Why Are There Requirements to Enter an LDS Temple?

In the Old Testament the Lord invited the Elders of Israel to come up into the Mountain with Moses. However, initially as he spoke with them, he caused the elders to stand at the base of the mountain and gave them the 10 Commandments and come other laws and requirements of purification that he expected they observe before coming up into the Holy Mountain. Unfortunately, while Moses was away, the people made the golden calf, and engaged in idol worship. Consequently, a preparatory Law of Moses was given to the people with additional outward rules and requirements of purification to enter the Jewish Temple.

Today, temples and the everlasting gospel are available to all kingdoms, nations, tongues, and peoples, and not just one nation. However, the rules and requirements of individual inward purification are still required. Paul in 1 Corinthians 5:11 says "But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat."

Now, while no one is absolutely perfect in this life, their is a minimum standard of holiness and inward purity that we can achieve and which the Lord expects. 1 Cor 5:11 is the basis for the purification requirements of the New Testament Temple:
Fornication: all moral sin is forbidden. All Christian disciples are expected to observe strict abstinence before marriage and complete fidelity within marriage.
Covetous: we are to live God more than money. A wonderful measure and gauge of this is that all Christian disciples are required to pay a full tithing or 10% of their increase to Christ's Church. In the temple we covenant to consecrate and devote all we have to God, but 10% is the minimum to enter the temple. It doesn't make sense to want to covenant to give 100%, when we can't give 10%.
Idolater: All Christian disciples should posses a love and testimony of Jesus Christ as their Savior, as well as their faith and testimony in the Restoration of the Gospel in the Last Days through Joseph Smith which continues on to the present with our current Prophet President Thomas S. Monson.
Railer: Christian disciples worthy of the Lord's House should never be guilty of any type of abuse to wife or offspring.
Drunkard: Isaiah warns us of "following after strong drink" and allowing "wine to inflame us". Similarly, the Word of Wisdom which is the Lord's Latter-day law of health which requires that we abstain from any alcohol, tobacco, coffee, tea or any other type of illicit drugs.
Extortioner: We should be honest in all our dealings with our fellow man avoiding any type of lying, cheating, or stealing.

During the time of the Law of Moses, if a Jew were to become unclean, he would have to come before the Priest and confess his uncleanliness, and submit to the requirements of purification, and return to the Priest after fulfilling these requirements and be declared ritually pure to enter into the Temple. Today, the New Testament LDS Bishop serves as a Judge in Israel in the same way the Priest did in the Old Testament. LDS Bishop's are not necessarily "preachers." Sermons and lessons on Sunday are assigned out and given by the members to members. Bishop's are tasked with receiving confession, assisting with repentance and the determination of the requirements of purification, and in determining ritual purity for a person to participate in the rites and ordinances of the gospel such as the Lord's Supper or Sacrament every Sunday and in determining worthiness to go to the LDS Temple. The Bishop also helps with the poor and needy under his stewardship.

Someone asked why the requirements to not drink beer will keep you out of the temple while the Word of Wisdom requirement to "eat food in its season" is not generally observed in America and is not required. The answer is that 1 Cor 5:11 discusses drunkenness as the requirement. Nevertheless, the American people are not immune from the grave health consequences of eating foods loaded with preservatives.

It is well recognized in scripture in D&C 1, that the people of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are far from perfect. The Lord says he is pleased with His church "collectively and not individually". And in another place, the Lord says that the church is under condemnation for neglecting the Book of Mormon. So, it can be said, that the LDS Church is under some degree of condemnation. The people of the church have not become perfected yet and therefore, we are not enjoying all the blessings me might enjoy and will one day enjoy in the Millennium when Christ's Kingdom will become perfected. In a way, we are sojourning through the Deserts of Sinai. I am sure there weren't many converts who saw Israel out in the desert and were attracted to come join God's people as they suffered through their days of chastisement.

Temple, Constitution, and Self-Government
If you really understood and loved the great Constitution of the United States, then you should immediately love the LDS Temple as a great institution and mechanism of freedom and social therapy and rehabilitation. The Money Elite who control this world are ready to destroy the American Empire they have Infiltrated, Corrupted, and Subverted and move on to China. They would like us in America, who will survive the great tribulations that they have already begun to unleash upon us, to believe that Constitutional and Representative Democracy is a failed experiment no more noteworthy than Greece or Rome.

In the mind of the Power and Money Elite, man is incapable of governing himself. According to them, man is corrupt, completely controlled by his passions, and requires some sort of monarchy, or oligarchy to rule over him. The Constitution, on the other hand, is established on the premise that all men are created equal, all men should be subject to the same laws, and that man can and should be able to govern himself. However, as Alexis De'Tocqueville commented in "Democracy in America" the Christian Churches and the peoples faith in Christ is what makes Self Government work.

However, we have seen a failure of Christianity in America. Christian Churches are no longer supporting our Constitutional Government by helping their people to govern their own behavior. While the US does not endorse any one Church over another, we do have a national faith that 1. all men will stand before God to be judged. 2. all men are subject and all laws should support and reflect natural law which is the "golden rule" that no man should do to another when he wouldn't want another to do to him. Instead the Money Elite practice a different golden rule: "he who has the gold makes the rules."

Many Christian churches make no requirements and have no expectations of their people. They do not receive confession, they do not assign punishment, and they do not provide social rehabilitation. Most Churches today allow anyone to go through the motions of Christian observance, without any expectations. You can pretty much do whatever you want, and as long as you haven't been arrested, you can be baptized, and partake of the Lord's Supper unworthily. Sure, many Christian Churches will excommunicate if a particular member commits some terrible crime out of embarrassment, but Churches rarely provide mechanisms which allow people to confess their sins before they become public scandals. Consequently, many people look at the hypocrisy of Christianity and become disillusioned with organized religion altogether.

So, I am not saying that there have never been temple-going LDS members who have never committed a terrible crime. There is nothing to prevent a person from lying to their bishop. And there is nothing about being baptized, or taking the Lord's Supper, or going to the Temple that guarantees Eternal Life by themselves. But, what the LDS Church provides is a great system which provides opportunities for all people to make confession, receive correction, receive social/spiritual rehabilitation and rewards and positively reinforces righteous self-government. The LDS Church will forever uphold the foundation principles of our Constitutional Government.

One of the many complaints against the LDS Temple and it's worthiness requirements, is that so many of the requirements are very socially acceptable behaviors. Because of this, it is very easy for people to excuse themselves and rationalize, "Drinking coffee cannot possibly be all that bad since most of good Christian people I know do it." You cannot tell me that only good little LDS people who go to the temple and refuse coffee are going to be blessed and rewarded more than everyone else. God absolutely hates this argument. In fact, this is precisely the argument that God says make a nation ripe for total destruction.

Mosiah 29: 26-27 Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people. And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity (sin becomes socially acceptable), then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land.

Today, America has and is further undergoing a process of Ideological Subversion and Demoralization. The Power and Money Elite want us to lose faith in the Constitution and America. To do that they need to fill our head with false ideas and propaganda. To get people to accept lies and false propaganda, they need to be corrupted and demoralized. A demoralized person cannot determine truth because truth would cause pierce their conscience and cut them to the very center. The truth tells a wicked demoralized person to change and repent. Change is difficult and painful so, the demoralized person would rather accept lies as reality.

But, the key here is that the real threat to the US is our demoralization and that for the past decades, fornication, pornography, drunkenness, use of other illicit psychoactive substances and drugs is commonplace. The sins of abortion, and same-sex marriage have become false civil rights issues totally neglecting the rights of the child to live and to be raised in a home with both a father and a mother when possible. And if you speak out against the behavior of homosexuality, you are labeled a "homophob" and a "bigot." All these are grave sins, that the true and living God has clearly stated are sinful and are forbidden. While there will aways be a minority of people who struggle with sin and addiction, the problem for America is that we have allowed ourselves to become Demoralized to the point where all these things are now socially acceptable and are not any longer even considered sin.

Why is using any type of psychotropic drug wrong. The brain develops via positive and negative feelings and reinforcement. We are emotional creatures, therefore, good feelings and negative feelings reinforce certain connections in the brain and therefore certain behaviors that lead to better health and better survival fitness. Buy taking psychoactive substances for the purposes of getting "high", this totally short-circuits these mechanisms. In a very real sense, Doing drugs is stealing. You didn't earn that "high" feeling. The feelings of elation should be reserved for moments of accomplishment, discovery, and natural social interactions with family and friends.

Even if you don't believe in God, if you are any student of history, you must recognize that the Power and Money Elite of this world have used the importation of drugs to demoralize, economically drain, and then destroy one empire after another. The economic drain of a nation requires a massive expansion of territory via a military industrial complex to keep an advanced economy going and keep pace with the economic drain from the trade deficit. However, eventually the cost to maintain the trade deficit and the empire becomes to great and the entire Ponzi scheme comes crashing down.

S0, if you love freedom, and you love the Constitution of the United States, come join in the cause to save America by preaching repentance, supporting the re-moralization, and Social and Spiritual Rehabilitation of this country. Many Christians ask why LDS Missionaries preach to other Christians. One main reason is because many Christians require the social and spiritual rehabilitation. LDS Missionaries and Members alike could be considered trained Social and Spiritual Therapist. And we do it all free of charge.

Remember the purpose of the New Testament Temple is inscribed on each one "Holiness to the Lord." The purpose of the LDS Temple is to help reward and reinforce righteous behavior and habits. The covenants and promises of the temple are to consecrate your life to Christ, and to help the poor and needy in exchange for the promise of sanctification or a decrease in the desire for sin. Christ taught the rich young man to have eternal life, "'if thou wilt be made perfect, sell all that thou hast, give to the poor, and come and follow me." Consecration is the covenant of the temple, and Sanctification is the blessing.

Sanctification and Consecration

Bishop David H. Burton, the Presiding Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints gave an excellent talk in LDS General Conference about the Sanctifying effect of helping the needy and poor. In my opinion, this talk is the meat of the gospel of Jesus Christ. You will remember that in the New Testament a rich young man asked Jesus Christ, "What shall I do to obtain Eternal Life." Christ responded, "What saith the Law?" After running down the 10 Commandments, the young man replied, "all these I have kept since I was a boy. What lack I yet?" Then Christ gave one of the most important sayings in all of scripture, "If thou wilt be made perfect, sell all that thou hast, give to the poor, and come and follow me." This covenant and commitment is referred to as "Consecration". For LDS, this covenant is the higher covenant of the New Testament, and it is covenant that is made in the LDS Temple. In return for this devotion, Christ promises us that we can become sanctified and perfected from our sins.

Consecration is not a vow of poverty. That is going beyond the mark. God does not require that anyone "run faster than they have strength." Consecration means that after your righteous wants and needs are satisfied, that you devote all your excess time, talents, and resources to Him, His Church, and to helping the poor and needy. For some, who have little, we are taught in the Book of Mormon "I give not because I have not, but if I had, I would give".

Sanctification is much different than Justification. Justification is what occurs when a person is baptized by water and then born again by fire and the Holy Ghost. Justification is the continual forgiveness of sins by Christ's atonement and the imputing of His righteousness upon the believer. However, while it's nice to be forgiven, Sin still has serious and painful consequences. Let's say I smoke. I can believe in Christ and ask for forgiveness each night, but if I continue to smoke, Christ will not save me from the consequences of COPD and possibly Lung Cancer. We reap what we sow. However, the promise of Sanctification means that if we make the higher covenant of consecration and keep this covenant, we are promised that Christ's atonement not only has the mercy to forgive us, but it has the power to strengthen us against all sin. While, according to Paul, initial justification occurs by faith and not by works, Sanctification is absolutely all about works.

(Justification= initial condescension of the Holy Ghost to dwell with an imperfect individual to inspire them to repent, follow Christ, and be baptized, e.g. God makes the first move. Without this justifying condescension, the Holy Ghost could never dwell in fallen man at all and man could never be turned from His path of sin. However, after this initial "rescue"; good works, ordinances, and covenants are then required to keep that Spirit as a constant companion leading to Sanctification).

Priesthood and Temple
In the Old Testament, the Priesthood of God was not freely available to all. In the days or dispensation of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, only the oldest son received this honor. In the case of Jacob and his 12 sons, the oldest son(Reuben, Simeon) lost out because of serious moral sin. The honor of the priesthood and birthright was then given to Joseph, who was the oldest son of Jacob's 2nd wife Rachel. This honor was symbolized by Joseph receiving the fabled "coat of many colors." The other brothers were so jealous that they sold their brother as a slave into Egypt, tore up the coat into pieces, dipping a small piece of the coat in animal blood. They then delivered the bloody remnant to Jacob telling him some wild animal killed and ate Joseph. However, it turned out that in the end, Joseph in Egypt ended up saving his family from the great famine. In the last days, the tribe of Joseph in America (symbolic of Egypt) will serve to save the rest of the house of Israel from a spiritual famine which was the Great Apostasy during the Dark Ages through the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through Joseph Smith in this the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times.

During another Dispensation in the day of Moses, God initially wanted all the Elders of Israel to come with Moses up into the Mountain to make covenants with the Lord, and become a Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation. However, we read that the people where afraid and responded to the invitation, to have Moses go alone and speak with the Lord himself and come back and tell them what the Lord said. Ex 20:19 "And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die." However, while they were gone, we know they claimed Moses delays coming down from the mountain so they made the golden calf and engaged in the idol worship of the Egyptians (type of the Last Days).

Consequently, the higher covenant of Abraham was not given at this time, but a lesser and preparatory Law of Moses was given to the people. (Gal 3:17, Heb 7:11) And the priesthood was not given to all the men of Israel, but only to the tribe of Levi and the Sons of Aaron who stood with Moses after coming down from the mountain. During the time of the Law of Moses, only the Levites and the Sons of Aaron were washed, anointed, and clothed in the robes of the priesthood to serve in the temple. And like Joseph's coat, their robes were of made of many colors to represent their sins and need for the future atonement of Jesus Christ. Only once a year, did the High Priest, representing Jesus Christ, dress in all white and pass through the Veil into the Holy of Holies of the Temple's inner sanctum.

However, now that Christ has performed the Atonement and died and has been resurrected and the fullness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ and the higher Abrahamic Covenant has been restored, the veil of the temple had been torn. The Bible does not say the Veil fell down, but only was torn allowing the righteous in Christ to pass through. John in Revelation was shown the Saints in the Latter-days in the Temple and commented why everyone was wearing white in the Temple. Priests in the temple usually didn't all wear white, only the High Priest wore white. But the angel said in Revelation was told that "these are they who have washed their garments white in the blood of the Lamb". So, the white clothing in the temple represents that disciples of Christ have been washed clean of their sins by His atoning blood.

New Testament Temple
And now in the New Testament Temple, John in Revelation said he saw "another angel fly in the midst of heaven with the everlasting gospel to preach to all kingdoms, nations, tongues, and peoples." Also, John comments that this angel says "hurt not the Earth, nor the trees until we have sealed the servants of God in their forehead". So, now today, the higher covenant and priesthood is not just available to the oldest son, or only one single tribe, but today, this honor is available to every kingdom, nation, tongue and people. In the Old Testament, the temple was only available to one tribe, one family, one language, one nation, one kingdom, one land, one people. Today, these blessing are available to everyone. This is why the angel appears sounding his horn on the top of every LDS Temple. This is the message that the gospel is sounding, that this great covenant, and priesthood, and blessing, and honor is available to all. Accordingly, we see new testament temples being built all over the world to every kingdom, nation, tongue and people.

So, just as in the Old Testament, only the sons of Aaron were washed and anointed and ordained kings and priests unto God, today all worthy disciples of Christ can make these similar preparations and covenants with God just has the Sons of Aaron did in the Old Testament unto God who is the King of kings and Lord of lords. However, the ritual in the temple is a metaphor for life, and is teaching a lesson about who God is, who we are, our relationship with God, and the purpose of life. The endowment of power occurs as we understand and keep the covenant of consecration we make in the New Testament Temple. As we ponder these lessons and "measure the pattern" of the Temple as Ezekiel was instructed to do; and the better we understand and keep these things, the more immune to Satan's temptations we become. We are promised that we will eventually lose all desire for sin. As the covenant of the mountain of the lord's House rolls forth and grows to fill the whole Earth, Satan will be bound.

Kyiv Ukraine Temple Youth Celebration

Last year, an LDS Temple was dedicated in Kyiv, Ukraine. This temple will serve the youth and families of many Eastern European countries. This video shows excerpts from a cultural celebration by LDS youth from surrounding countries to commemorate the dedication of the Temple. I love how this short video captures a glimpse of their faith and testimony of Jesus Christ and His restored gospel.

Temple Blessings

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is led by the Prophet and 12 Apostles just like the Church of Jesus Christ in the days of the original Apostles. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, wrote in the Ensign about the purpose and blessings of the temple.

Just as the Jewish Temple differed from the Jewish Synagogue, the Restored LDS Temple differs from the LDS Chapel. President Uchtdorf related his first time attending the temple at the age of 16. He grew up in Communist-controlled East Germany at the time and it was a (then) rare opportunity to have travel papers approved to travel to the nearest LDS temple in Switzerland. President Uchtdorf related how he would never forget the feelings he had as he and his family surrounded the temple alter and received the wonderful priesthood promise that his family would be together in this life and in the next--Together Forever.

President Uchtdorf made some other interesting observations. He said that crossing national boarders to receive temple blessings was analogous to how the temple has the power to cross the boundaries of death and eternity to seal families together forever. He said that even if our circumstances do not allow us to attend the temple, members of the church should live worthy to hold a current temple recommend. President Uchtdorf said that the temple and people keeping and living the covenants of the temple is God's way of spreading righteousness, peace, and His Kingdom on the Earth.

“Every foundation stone that is laid for a Temple, and every Temple completed … lessens the power of Satan on the earth, and increases the power of God and Godliness.” --President George Q. Cannon (1827–1901), First Counselor in the First Presidency

OT vs. NT Temple

A friend of mine was questioning the purpose of the LDS Temple. To him, believing in Jesus Christ should be enough without needing anything else for salvation. For my friend, if Christ is our only mediator with God the Father, then what purpose is a temple?

In response, I told him he was being too concrete about the NT temple ceremony. Christ said he would reveal the mysteries of the kingdom in parables. Consequently, being concrete about the temple demonstrates how you easily many look past the spiritual significance and meaning behind the ritual.

According to Acts 2, the temple as well the Lords Supper remained a central part of Early Christian worship. In fact, Acts 2:44-47 says that it is a benefit of temple attendance and regular observance of the Lord's Supper that empowers the Early Christian Saints in their ability to eat their meat with gladness, and singleness of heart, praise God, find favour with all the people, and add to the church daily. After the temple was destroyed in AD 79, we see the church begin to go into decline and Apostasy. How can I prove the Apostasy? We no longer live with all things in common. The covenant of consecration/sanctification is the NT temple covenant that Christ revealed to the rich young man when He said, "If thou wilt be perfect, sell all that thou hast, give to the poor, and come and follow me." The Story of communalism is the story of Thanksgiving and also big part of the Early days of the LDS Church.

Acts 2:44-47 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Yes, Joseph Smith did borrow or was inspired by a few elements of the Masonic Ritual. He was impressed by how the ritual symbolism placed the most educated and uneducated on an equal level. The man plowing the field could learn truth along with the most educated.

The endowment ceremony is represented in scripture in other forms such as the vision of Lehi/Nephi, the vision of Moses, King Benjamin's speech, and Christ's covenant people speech among others. The symbol and ritual used may be different, but what is being taught is the same.

But most make the mistake of thinking that Masonic and LDS ritual teach the same thing. They do not. Equating them other than superficially would be like saying a powerpoint presentation on Biology was teaching the same thing as a powerpoint on Art History.

In the OT temple, only the high priest representing Christ was able to pass through the veil once a year. That priest dressed in white and passed through a thick 3-4 inch veil with embroidered angels representing the angels who guard the way of the tree of life.

In the NT temple, the veil is thin and almost see through. The veil has perforations which allow people to pass representing the torn veil at Christ's death. FYI, the Bible said the veil was torn, it does not say the veil fell down as it was hanging up like a curtain.

A person representing Jesus Christ is the only one that stands on the other side of the veil representing that Christ has been the only one who was able to pass through the veil. The true believers are washed, anointed, and clothed in white clothing (sanctification) as the OT high priest, and they are brought through the veil by Christ who was the first. The other assistants at the veil on our side of the veil represent the embroidered angels who stand in the way of the tree of life. Except now they help us and present us at the veil instead of impede our access to it.

But it is only Christ alone that has bridged the gulf between God the Father and Man that brings us through the veil into the presence of the Father.

Other Notes

Many Evangelicals rejection of priesthood, church organization, and gifts of God come down to a reactionary response and rejection of the authority of the Roman Catholic Church. Because they do not accept Papal authority, they interpret the Bible to say anything having to do with hierarchy, authority, and gifts has been done away. This includes the temple.

Acts 2:44-47 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

The Bible contains many details about the temple such as the OT veil was 4in thick with embroidered seriphs representing the angels who guard the way of the tree of life after the Fall 0f Adam and Eve.

We know the temple will be rebuilt but in the Last Days unto every nation, kindred, tongue, and people instead of only one nation, kindred, tongue and people.

The NT veil is white, thin, and has partitions representing the torn veil and that the atonement of Christ has bridged the chasm between God and man. Now all Gods children can become sanctified and pass through the veil and past the angels into the presence of God and partake of the tree of life.

Remember Rev 1-3 and the promises of John to those that have have overcome the world have have not themselves been overcome: they are promised to be made kings and priests unto God, to eat of the tree of life, to be given "hidden manna", to be given a new name, and to be blessed to sit with Christ in His throne with Him. These promises are realized in the NT Temple.

In the OT temple the priests wore multicolored robes and undergarments and only the high priest once a year was permitted to be washed and annointed to pass into the holie of holies. Now through Christ and the higher covenant, all of Gods children are blessed to wear white robes, and pass through the veil into Gods presence through Christ.

John asks who are all these people dressed in white robes. The angel said, these are they who have sanctified themselves and washed their garments white in the blood of the lamb and serve day and night in His temple.

The veil doesn't separate. There are partitions. But obviously, you aren't in the presence of the Father at this moment. The temple symbolically represents the promise and process of actuually entering into heaven into the presence of the Father.
You are being too concrete. The temple is a parable. The veil represents the actual reality that you and I are not in heaven with the Father right now. A person representing the Lord Jesus Christ at the veil represents that only Jesus Christ can bring us through the veil into the presence of God.

1. Christ said he would reveal the mysteries of the kingdom in parables is the wicked would not understand them because they don't pay enough attention to the meaning behind the story. The LDS temple is a parable. 1. Matt 13:11. Luke 8:10

2. You are not literally in heaven seeing the Father in the flesh with your natural eyes. So, therefore there is a veil present currently in this sense.

3. The person at the veil represents the Lord Jesus Christ at the veil at the Final Judgement. What happens is all symbolic. Don't get so concrete about it. The symbolic meaning of what is happening is what is important over the concrete symbols themselves.

You miss the whole point of the OT temple. The shortcoming of the OT temple was that only one person per year was able to pass into the Holy of Holies.

Now in the NT temple everyone can be washed and annointed, dressed in white priesthood robes like the priests and be brought through the veil by Christ who was the first, and who tore the veil to make a way for the rest of us to pass through.

Remember Paul said the Levitical Priesthood had not the power to make one perfect else why would another priest arise after the Order of Melchesidek. Ie Christ.

Therefore Christ was the first to pass into the presence of the Father and has made a way for the rest of us to become sanctified and pass as He has done.

As far as the oaths associated with the temple covenants, they were a reminder of the example of Annanias and Sopphira who broke the higher covenant of sanctification/consecration by withholding a portion and were struck dead by God. That's kind of a OT thing for God to do in Acts. But this part of the older temple ritual just reminds us of the spiritual consequences of breaking our covenants. Again these are just ritual symbolism teaching something symbolically.

Joseph Smith confessed he was impressed by the Masonic ritual and how it taught abstract truth using ritual symbolism to the learned and refined as well as the unlearned and illiterate. So, yes Joseph Smith felt inspired to barrow the system the same way your preacher may give a lecture using Microsoft Powerpoint. If you were to see a lecture on Biology and History, you may assume the same thing was being taught if you only focused in the laser pointer dark room and slides. Conversely, the message of the Masonic ritual and the LDS temple is totally different.

The LDS temple is about Jesus Christ and tells the story of creation, fall, our separation from God and the Tree of Life, and the plan of salvation by which through Christs atonement we can receive the higher covenant and become prepared and sanctified, to again enter I to the presence of the Father through Christ. Realizing Gods love for you through His plan gives you an eternal perspective that empowers that person to resist sin better.

The message of the Masonic ritual is about Hyrim Abiff and becoming a better man, citizen by learning about Gods charactistics as a creator, how God brings order to chaos, and by contemplating ones death to acheive a higher perspective.

Christ stands at the veil and makes us worthy. Those who follow Christ are washed and anointed and clothed in beautiful white robes. We are then brought through the partitioned veil by Christ. Again, the temple is a parable, don't get too concrete about it. It's symbolically teaching this.

How welcome are the poor, the fatherless and the widow without means to travel around the world to the temple. In the Last Days, the NT Temple is being made available to all people, nations kindreds and tongues, and even the poor, fatherless, widows, etc. Everyone is invited and if they have faith in Christ, He will empower anyone to forsake the sins listed in 1 Cor 5

Paul says is any man be called a brother who is guilty of: Fornication, Covetness, Idolatry, Railing, Drunkenness, Extortion

These should receive correction, disipline and assistance by the Church or be cast out. False religion speaks nothing of these sins and continues to serve the flesh and blood of the Lords Supper to those who are unworthy or unrepentant.

This sin is called priestcraft, or gainsaying and is represented by Aaron who took the gold of the Israelites and made them a false God so they could defile themselves.

The OT Temple was given to one nation=Israel
The OT Temple was given to one kindred=Abraham,Isaac, Jacob
The OT Temple was given to one tongue=Hebrew
The OT Temple was given to one people=Israelites
John saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven with the seal of God and everlasting gospel to give to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.

The NT Temple is given to All Nations
The NT Temple is given to All Kindreds
The NT Temple is given to All Tongues
The NT Temple is given to All Peoples

and the Last shall be first and the first shall be Last. After the NT temple has been built to all nations, it will finally be rebuilt in Jerusalem to the Jews.

The Spirit of Elijah

"The dead will be after you, they will seek after you as they have after us in St. George [temple]. They called upon us, knowing that we held the keys and power to redeem them. I will here say before closing, that two weeks before I left St. George, the spirits of the dead gathered around me, wanting to know why we did not redeem them." (Journal of Discourses, vol. 19, p. 229, Wilford Woodruff)."

Someone questioned the following quote from Wilford Woodruff who was the 4th Prophet and President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This person was concerned that this quote advocated the forbidden practice of spiritism or divination. First off, this question is a reflection of an unfortunate misunderstanding of the quote. Pres. Woodruff is not speaking of the living seeking to communicate with the dead, but the dead trying to inspire the living.

Let me be clear from the start that the LDS Church strictly forbids its members from praying to anyone other than Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ or from practicing any type of spiritism or seeking communication from anyone who has died. Any practices of this sort invites evil spirits who will deceive you.

Instead, the spirit that Pres. Woodruff is speaking of is the spirit of Genealogy and Family History work that so many feel to do. This spirit is referred to as the Spirit of Elijah. After completing the temple in St. George Utah, Pres. Woodruff recounts that he was unexpectedly visited by a host of spirits including the Founding Fathers and many great men of the Protestant Reformation. They wanted to know why the LDS church had forgotten them and had not provided them a baptism by vicarious proxy in the restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They had faithfully completed the work God has given them to do which made the restoration of the church possible. In response, Pres. Woodruff immediately provided these ordinances for these great pioneers of freedom.

I and many other LDS and non-LDS have been prompted to do genealogy and family history work. Not in the same way as Pres. Woodruff. But the unseen motivation to seek out our dead ancestors is real. This desire to do Genealogy work which is the spirit of Elijah is why so many people are interested in family history research. This spirit is in fulfillment of the prophecy in Malachi which says in the Last Days Elijah will appear and hearts of the fathers will turn to the children and the hearts of the children turn to their fathers.

Mal 4:6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
Luke 1:7 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

Luke 1:17 is speaking of the mission of John the Baptist to baptize the living before the first coming of Christ while Mal 4:6 is speaking of Elijah himself coming before the great and dreadful day of the Lord to restore the keys of baptism for the dead before the Second Coming of Christ. Elijah appeared to Joseph Smith and restored the keys of this work in the Kirtland Temple on April 3, 1836. So, John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah to baptize the living before the First Coming of Jesus Christ and Elijah himself came to baptize the dead before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

Since names may be required to resurrect people and call them out of the Earth, it would be useful to do all the genealogy work so that the righteous can be resurrected during the Millennium. Christ could do it all himself. But that is not how he operates. He allows man to participate in this work just like He allows man to participate in the building up of His kingdom on Earth and in doing missionary work.

Old Temple Covenant vs. New Temple Covenant

Many Christians misunderstand LDS doctrine because much of it is sanctification focused while evangelical doctrine tends to be more justification focused. This focus on sanctification through the grace and power of Christ's atonement is evident in our name as "Latter-day Saints." Our sanctification doctrine is also reflected in and is a product of the LDS Temple. The whole purpose of the New Testament Temple and its associated ordinances and covenants is Christ preparing man after they have come unto Christ to enter into the presence of the Father through complete sanctification. While justification describes the initial rescue from sin by the mercy alone of Christ; Sanctification is the process by which the believer, through Christ, finally reaches the point at which they have lost all desire for sin. Satan has lost all power over them, and they have developed complete mastery over all the appetites of the flesh. Also, they have completely surrendered their will to God and only desire to do His righteous will continually.

When Moses was invited by God to receive and re-establish the higher covenant of Abraham, he and all the Elders of Israel were invited up into the mountain. God wanted a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation (Ex 19:6). But the Elders were afraid of God and told Moses to speak to God for them (Ex 20:19). The Elders told Moses, "You go Moses, and we'll stay here." However, while Moses was away, because Moses "delayed" his coming, the Elders and the people backslid into the practiced priestcraft and idolatry by making a golden calf and worshiping it through sexual sin. This is a type of the Last Days. Aaron becomes a type of the Anti-Christ who receives filthy lucre (gold) and administers a false religion to the people. Then God warns Moses to "hasten" and hurry down because the people were defiling themselves. Catching the people in sin suddenly like a thief in the night, Moses broke the tablets of the higher covenant. God then gave Israel a preparatory covenant instead of what was originally given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now the New and Everlasting Covenant is extended to the Gentiles and all Gods people are again invited up to the mountain to be made kings and priests unto God, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a peculiar people (1 Pet 2:9).

Old and Preparatory Temple Covenant
The purpose of the OT temple was to make Israel ashamed and remind them of their sinfulness and the need for a Savior and point them to Jesus Christ.
Ezek 43:10 Ezekiel is shown the temple and commanded to "measure the pattern", form, fashion, ordinances, covenants, comings in, goings out, etc
Heb 7:11 The Levitical priesthood and covenant does not perfect or sanctify only the higher or Melchizedek priesthood and temple covenant can sanctify.
Temple only given to one nation, kindred, tongue and people and Priesthood only given to one tribe.
Temple priests wore robes and undergarments of blue, red, gold, and purple to represent their sins (coats of many colors)
Veil was 4 in thick, 60 ft high, and embroidered with angels who stood in the way like the Seraphim to guard the way of the tree of life or the Holy of Holies.
Animals were sacrificed pointing to the great and last sacrifice by Jesus Christ
Once a year only the high priest dressed in white and was washed and anointed to enter into the Holy of Holies and pass by the angels through the veil.
To enter the OT temple a Jew must meet specific criteria of outward cleanliness

New and Everlasting Temple Covenant
The purpose of the New Testament Temple is to bring us from Christ to the Father through purification and sanctification
Ezek 37:26-29 Israel promised the Everlasting Covenant and temple (tabernacle and sanctuary) in the Last Days to purify and sanctify Israel.
Rev 14:6 Another angel to deliver the everlasting gospel and covenant to all kindred, nations, tongues and peoples
Members of all 12 tribes are made kings and priests unto God and not just one tribe
Those who "overcometh" are made kings and priests unto God, given "hidden manna", and a "new name" and dressed in "white robes" and blessed to "eat of the tree of life" according with the words of John in Revelations Ch 1-3
The first shall be last and the last shall be first, the temple and covenant will go to the gentiles first and then to the Jews last when the temple will be rebuilt in Jerusalem.
All members are made Priests in the New Testament Temple are washed and anointed and dressed in white robes symbolizing they have been washed by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Rev 7:14 John in Revelations asked who are all these people dressed in white robes in the temple and told they are those who have come out of or through the tribulation turbulence and have washed or sanctified their robes through the blood of Christ.
The veil of the temple is almost see though, and has partitions so that we can easily pass through symbolizing the torn veil at Christs death
Temple workers representing angels serve to help us through the veil instead of prevent our passage
Rev 3:5 Christ promises to confess our name to the Father and to the angels
To enter the NT temple a Christian must meet specific criteria of inward cleanliness (1 Cor 5:11)
The covenants, sacrifice, and ritual help you be a better person, become better sanctified, and lose desire for sin via 3 motivations and 3 mechanism:

3 Motivations for Sanctification
1. Awe, fear, and reverence of the power of God (Eccl. 12: 13)
2. Plan of Salvation and promise of reward (Heb. 11: 6)
3. Love of God for you. (1 Jn 4: 7-8)

3 Mechanisms for Sanctification
1. Sacrifice of will via the covenant of consecration (Matt 19:21) "if thou wilt be perfect"
2. Remembering Christ's Atonement (Luke 22:19)
3. The Holy Ghost (1 Cor 6:11)

Baptisms for the Dead by Vicarious Proxy

1 Cor. 15: 29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?

Mal 4: 5-6 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

1 Peter 3: 18-19; 4: For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; . . . For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.


LDS practice an ordinance referred to as baptism for the dead. This sacred ordinance is one of the ordinances done in LDS temples. LDS believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only church on the Earth with authority to baptize in the name of Christ and the only church with the fullness of truth. For the LDS people, it is not enough to become baptized ourselves by God's priesthood authority which was restored to the Earth by angelic messengers after long years of apostasy and spiritual darkness. LDS understand the Bible to teach that true believers have responsibility to make this truth available to our kindred dead as well as every person who has ever lived on the face of the Earth.

Christ was very clear to Nicodemus that unless an accountable individual was baptized by water and the spirit, he can not enter into the kingdom of heaven. However, during the dark ages and until the Restoration, the authority and sealing keys had been lost from the Earth. Consequently, there have lived and died millions of faithful Christians who God knows would have received the proper baptism by the proper priesthood authority had they had the opportunity.

Because God is faithful and just, Baptism for the dead performed by vicarious proxy is the way God has provided for those of us living to do for those who have died, something they could not do for themselves in life, and that they cannot do in death. According to the Bible, Christ promised to preach the gospel to the disembodied spirits in prison. Then the Bible says that Elijah would return and turn the hearts of the children towards our fathers. And then the Bible says that Christians would enter into baptism on behalf of the dead by vicarious proxy.

A friend of mine expressed the sentiment that, in his view, the idea of baptizing a faithful Catholic, or person of Jewish faith was disrespectful not only to them but to their other living relatives who may not be LDS. This friend claimed that baptizing in the name of a person who was of another faith would be like someone burning a Book of Mormon or an effigy of Joseph Smith. According to my friend, baptizing in the name of someone who was not already LDS was very rude and disrespectful to the memory of that person and what they stood for. In response to that sentiment, I had the following thoughts.

1. When an LDS member enters into baptism on behalf of someone who has died, it is done in a spirit of love, honor and respect. LDS believe that we enjoy the fullness of truth and consider baptism for the dead to be an expression of honor and respect to those who have gone before. Baptism for the Dead is also an expression of God's love and perfect justice and mercy. LDS understand that we stand on the shoulders of giants and without the faith and courage of those who have gone before, we would not be where we are today. So, it is important for others to understand that baptism for the dead is wholly meant to honor our forbearers and not disrespect them or their culture, faith, and beliefs.

2. When a member of the LDS faith is baptized on behalf of someone else who has died, that baptism does not make the person who has died LDS. This baptism only provides the ordinance to be accepted by that person if they so choose. Therefore, the act of the baptism really does nothing to the deceased other than invokes their name and memorializes them. If they wish to accept the ordinance, they are free to accept, decline, or ignore it altogether of their own freewill and choice.

3. On the other hand, if God has not yet revealed to you that the LDS church is His true Church on the Earth, and you do not believe that God restored His sealing power and priesthood keys necessary for baptism to Joseph Smith and modern prophets and Apostles, then our using that authority that you do not recognize shouldn't bother you. If there is no authority, our actions do nothing. Instead, you may do better expressing sorrow at what you consider an unfortunate waste of time in researching geological and family history records and in doing the ordinances.

4. There really isn't much of a difference between LDS Baptism for the Dead and the Christian belief that Jews will one day become Christian after Armageddon. Many Christians interpret the Bible to teach that in the Last Days, the nations of the Earth will gather to a great battle around the city of Jerusalem. According to mainstream Christian belief, right before the city of Jerusalem is completely destroyed, Jesus Christ will appear, divide the Mount of Olives, save the surviving Jews who will run to their Savior and then declare in wonderment, "what are these prints in your hands and in your side." In response, we are told Christ will say, "these are the wounds I received in the house of my friends." At that point, those Jews will be converted to Christ and become powerful witnesses who will convert Jews across the Earth to Christianity. This belief in the eventual conversion of the Jews to Christianity is taught by every major Christian denomination and non-denomination. And as you can guess, this kind of belief is very offensive to many Jews just as LDS Baptism for the Dead is also offensive to some for similar reasons.

5. Remember that all LDS beliefs involve both a spiritual and temporal aspect. This goes back to our belief in God who is both a physical and spiritual reality. Accordingly, Baptism for the dead is a physical or temporal representation of the LDS belief that the Bible prophecy will be fulfilled that one day "every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ."

6. Above, I stated how my friend likened Baptism to the Dead to Anti-Mormons demonstrating outside the Conference Center or at the Manti Pagent and burning Books of Mormon or effigies of Joesph Smith for LDS members to view. While an Anti-Mormon can claim he is showing disrespect for LDS beliefs our of a spirit of love and concern, the difference between this behavior and Baptism for the Dead is that LDS Baptism are done in private and Anti-Mormon demonstrations are done in public for LDS to see.

The publicness on the one hand, and the private nature of Baptism for the Dead really makes all the difference. We all believe in the God-given, self-evident freedom of speech and religious expression. But we also believe in the golden rule that we should not do unto others what we would not want them to do to us. Accordingly, I respect another persons freedom and right to burn all the Books of Mormon they want to and to throw as many darts at a picture of President Monson that they desire, so as they do it privately and not with the intent to do it in my sight so as to shock me or offend me. In the same way, I hope others would recognize our God-given right of religious expression. LDS Baptism for the Dead is done privately and unfortunately only made public by a few anti-Mormon adversaries who are really the ones guilty of creating the offense by making this ordinance not only public but casting it in-the-face of living non-LDS relatives.

Mormon Ritual and Ancient Temples

The Following video was shown at the Open House to the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple. Latter-day temples are the most powerful signs of the restoration of God's kingdom on the Earth. Most Jews and Christians await the restoration of the temple at Jerusalem, but many forget that the everlasting covenant and the temple of the New Testament would be established to all Gentile nations before eventually being restored to the Jews at Jerusalem. While the pattern and covenant of the Old Testament temple was meant to bring Israel to the Son Jesus Christ, the purpose and pattern of the New Testament temple is to perfect, sanctify, and prepare us through Jesus Christ to enter into the presence of God the Father, As you will see by this video presentation, these buildings are truly worthy to bare the words HOLINESS TO THE LORD, THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.

View Inside LDS Temples

Curitiba, Brazil Temple



Panama City, Panama Temple



Several LDS Temples

Why Temples?

pWhat's the big deal about temples? Why did God command Moses and the Israelites to build a tabernacle in the wilderness, and why did God command Solomon to build the first temple at Jerusalem and later command Zerrubabel to rebuild it? Was the point of the temple just to have a place to perform the required ordinances and ritual sacrifice of the Law of Moses? Was the point of the temple just to create a concrete point of worship for Israel? Some Christians claim that the need for a temple is now obsolete. They say the temple was old school and old testament. Now, since Christ has fulfilled the Law of Moses, our spiritual focus of worship should be Jesus Christ alone and not associated with any building. And besides, God tore the veil from top to bottom and the scriptures say God does not dwell in temples built by men's hands. Christ is our temple now.

Acts 17: 24 (Acts 7: 48) God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

Acts 17:24 is being said by Stephen to the Pharisees to remind them that God's presence was not in Herod's temple which wasn't built by the command of God but by the whims of Herod who tore down the second temple of Zarrubabel. Nevertheless, Christ is our temple. There is no denying that. Christ is the main spiritual meaning associated with the sacred structure. But what of the physical building itself. While some say the temple has no more righteous purpose, they misunderstand the major purpose why God himself commands and builds these structures. The problem with discounting the future role of the temple, is that the Bible foretells that God will rebuild His temple in the Last Days. And not just the one temple in Jerusalem, but temples will be built to every nation, kindred, tongue and people (Isa 2:1-2, Micah 4:1-2, Ezek 37:26-28, Rev. 7: 15, Rev 14:6).

But what of the real purpose of the temple? Why would the temple be important after Christ has already come? What could God need with a building? To understand the purpose of the temple, we need to go back to the days of Moses when God was attempting to establish His covenants with the people of Israel. What we see here is God raising up and preparing Moses to lead His covenant people out of bondage in Egypt. But when we look closely at the story, we see God did not intend for Moses to be the only one who would talk with God and everyone else would get God's word second-hand from Moses. What we see before the lesser covenant was made with Israel was that God wanted to establish a personal relationship with each individual person. God wanted everyone to climb the mountain and speak with Him. As Moses confessed, God wanted everyone in Israel to be a prophet, priest and king.

Num. 11: 29 And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!

Ex. 19: 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

Unfortunately, a kingdom of prophets, priests, and kings is not what happened. After God invited all the elders up into the mountain with Moses, the people refused. The people feared the Lord and told Moses to go up for them. I am sure our Father in Heaven was disappointed. But not as disappointed as he was at what Israel did next. While Moses was up in the mountain, the people got impatient and said Moses delayeth his coming. Thinking Moses wasn't going to return, Israel convinced Aaron make a golden calf to worship. Upon Moses return, and finding the people worshipping an idol, Moses smashed the plates containing the higher covenant and went back into the mountain and received the lesser or preparatory covenant known as the Law of Moses


Ex. 20: 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

So, what does the story of Moses in the mountain have to do with Latter-day temples? Temples are called by Isaiah, the mountain of the Lords House. In the same way God wanted every Israelite to go up into the mountain and speak with Him face to face, God desires a personal relationship with each of us. God doesn't just want one person to be the preacher and everyone else to get His word second-hand. God wants a kingdom of kings and priests, apostles and prophets. God wants a church of Abrahams and Moseses, Peters and Pauls. What does the temple have to do with this? The temple is where God manifest himself to His people and establishes his covenants with them.

Mark 4: 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:

Ezek 43:10-12 Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, . . and let them measure the pattern. . . shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof: and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them. This is the law of the house; Upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

How does God reveal himself in the temple? The temple teaches the mysteries of God or in other words, the temple teaches us about God, teaches us about who we are, and it teaches us about our relationship with God. But the temple just doesn't come out and say it. Jesus Christ said the mysteries of the kingdom were to be taught by parable. And the temple is exactly that. The temple is one great parable. As was revealed to Ezekiel, everything about the temple, its form, function, ritual symbolism, and ordinances teach something about God and His great plan of happiness for His children.

While studying a Sunday School lesson on the temple, I came across a quote by Joseph Smith who is the great prophet of this last dispensation before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith was called as a prophet like Moses, Abraham and Isaiah and like Moses was commanded to build temples so that God could establish personal relationships and covenants with each of His people individually. Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ at the time of His calling as a prophet, and he had something very interesting to say about the purpose of the temple and its relationship to scripture.

“Could we read and comprehend all that has been written from the days of Adam, on the relation of man to God and angels in a future state, we should know very little about it. Reading the experience of others, or the revelation given to them, can never give us a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can only be obtained by experience through the ordinances of God set forth for that purpose. Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was written on the subject. … I assure the Saints that truth … can and may be known through the revelations of God in the way of His ordinances, and in answer to prayer.”


Wow, when you ponder what Joseph Smith is saying, his words really ring true. It's not enough to just read about other people's temple experiences, God wants each person to have their own. Temple experiences are just what scriptures are. In the Book of Mormon for example we examples of how the mysteries of God are shown to Lehi and Nephi in what we refer to as their Tree of Life visions. Later we see the people of the Book of Mormon gather around a temple built in America to listen to their prophet King Benjamin and realize the people are having a temple experience. Later on we read of Christ's personal visitation to the Nephites in America and at the temple in the city called Bountiful. There, Christ Himself teaches the same temple principles and covenants that were given to Lehi and Nephi and given to the people of King Benjamin. And there are many more examples like the Brother of Jared, and Moses 1 in the Pearl of Great Price. And while Joseph Smith indicates that while it is both helpful and necessary that we read the experiences that other prophets and Apostles had with God, the temple is a place were each of us can and must have our own personal experiences with God if we are to enjoy the fullness of salvation, eternal life and exaltation.

Temporal and Spiritual

1 Ne. 15: 31-32 And they said unto me: Doth this thing mean the torment of the body in the days of probation, or doth it mean the final state of the soul after the death of the temporal body, or doth it speak of the things which are temporal? And it came to pass that I said unto them that it was a representation of things both temporal and spiritual; for the day should come that they must be judged of their works, yea, even the works which were done by the temporal body in their days of probation.

I have been thinking a lot lately about what it is that differentiates LDS from other Christians. As you look back at the history of the Christianity, we see the formation of the great Catholic and Orthodox churches with their ritual splendor, ordinances, tradition, and hierarchy. We then see the formation of smaller protestant denominations and non-denominations which have fractured off that have developed a kind of reactionary doctrine against the Catholic Church. While Catholics consider papal authority to be a major basis of their belief, Evangelicals interpret the Bible to teach no hierarchy and no authority but Jesus Himself (except when it comes to collecting tithing).

LDS on the other hand, do not consider authority and hierarchy to be in conflict or mutually exclusive to the "priesthood of all believers" and our individual ability to "approach the throne of God with boldness" as they say. As Nephi says, the things taught in scripture are both temporal and spiritual. And the same thing applies to the concept of the temple, church, priesthood and ultimately God Himself.

This conflict over temporal vs. spiritual is at the heart of the gospel divide even going back to the early church. Back then the Apostles warned against the doctrine of the Gnostic's who denied the physical resurrection of Christ. Such a denial was said to be of the spirit of the antichrist. Why did they deny Christ's resurrection? They rejected it because if Christ had redeemed His physical body and was viewed as the perfect revelation of the Father, then that would mean that the Father also consisted of the perfect harmonization of spirituality and physicality. But to the Gnostic's, matter was inherently evil.

The truth is that nothing is inherently evil but just corruptible. In the beginning we learn that God created all things and he looked upon the whole of creation and declared "It is good." But Christ sanctifies what Satan has corrupted and makes the corruptible incorruptible. Therefore since God encompasses all that is good, and tangible matter is good, therefore God must consist of both a glorified body and spirit. God is spirit, but God is not only just spirit and those who come to God must learn to worship him in spirit (talk) and in truth (walk).

It is this key truth concerning the unifying of the temporal and spiritual which is transcended by the very nature of God which is manifest in every aspect of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The concept of the Church of Christ is an ordered organization but also is the body of believers. The concept of the temple is a sacred structure which administers sacred covenants and serves as a parable and reminder of sacred truth but also represents the indwelling of the Holy Spirit within each individual. The priesthood is divine authority given by God to man to administer the covenants and gifts of God allowing man to act and speak in the name of God, as well as being a power and authority available to all believers who have been called and ordained by the laying on of hands to empower them to approach the throne of God and dwell in His presence. The concept of repentance consists of tangible steps which assist the believer in escaping and forsaking sin as well as the spiritual motivation of the love of God which makes sin loose its enticement.

Again and again in scripture we see the pattern of the heavenly and the earthly manifest. The Law of Moses, Bible prophecy, and the parables themselves are true occurrences which teach and represent a greater spiritual truth. But the lesson of the Old Testament vs. the New Testament was not that the spiritual destroyed the temporal. Christ said He had not come to destroy the law and the prophets but to fulfill. What the New Testament was about was about a restoration of the spiritual and higher law and a unification and a sanctification of the physical.

The Masonic signs of the compass and square represent this truth very well. A compass is used to draw circles. Circles are a shape found in heaven. So, the compass is used to represent heavenly things. The sign of the square is used to draw horizontal lines. The horizon and horizontal lines are something we see terrestrially and therefore represents the Earth and the physical aspect of existence. Therefore the compass and square together represents the unification of the spiritual and physical, male and female, and represents the true nature of God and is reflected in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Temple in the Book of Mormon

Many fail to see the temple and the endowment in scripture because they are too focused on the parable and ritual instead of the meaning behind it. Truth is the temple endowment is all over the Book of Mormon and even though the story and the symbols change, the underlying message remains the same.

Mark 4: 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:

Mysteries are "hidden manna" or teachings that God chooses to teach His people using symbols, parables, and ritual so that the wicked fail to understand them because they fail to give "heed and diligence" to understanding them. The lessons taught in the temple are akin to Christ telling His people a parable. Again, Mysteries are "hidden manna" taught by Christ to His people in parables, or ritual symbolism.

1 Ne. 1: 1 I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

Nephi says that He has been given a great knowledge of the mysteries or "hidden knowledge" of God.

1 Ne. 2: 16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.
1 Ne. 10: 19 For he that diligently seeketh shall find; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto them, by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in these times as in times of old, and as well in times of old as in times to come; wherefore, the course of the Lord is one eternal round.

Nephi was then shown the vision of the Tree of Life which was his endowment. All the basic aspects of the temple endowment are given to Nephi through his vision of the tree of life.

2 Ne. 5: 16 And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon’s temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine.

Nephi builds a temple after the order of the Law of Moses and the Lesser Priesthood.

Mosiah 2: 9 And these are the words which he spake and caused to be written, saying: My brethren, all ye that have assembled yourselves together, you that can hear my words which I shall speak unto you this day; for I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me, and open your ears that ye may hear, and your hearts that ye may understand, and your minds that the mysteries of God may be unfolded to your view.

The people of Nephi are gathered around the temple and King Benjamin says he will reveal the mysteries of God the people gathered at the temple.

Mosiah 5: 2,6-11 And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually. . . . And now, these are the words which king Benjamin desired of them; and therefore he said unto them: Ye have spoken the words that I desired; and the covenant which ye have made is a righteous covenant. And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters. . . .... I would that ye should take upon you the name of Christ, all you that have entered into the covenant with God that ye should be obedient unto the end of your lives. .... I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.

The people of Nephi at the temple recieve a group endowment and enter into the higher covenant of sanctification. These people are born again, become sons and daughters of God, and are given the new name.

Alma 12: 9-10 And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him. And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.

Mysteries are only to be given as God directs and according to God's will.

3 Nephi 20-26
3 Nephi 24:16-18 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened and heard; and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.
3 Nephi 26:19 And they taught, and did minister one to another; and they had all things common among them, every man dealing justly, one with another.

3 Nephi is the ultimate example of a group endowment administered by Christ himself and a renewal of His covenant with His people. All the fundamental aspects of the endowement are present. The people gather at the temple and accept and become witness of Christ, are purified and then are given bread to eat from Christ himself. Jesus Christ reestablishes and renews the covenants and reveals who the people are, their part in the plan, the whole plan of salvation is laid out, and the people are given commandments such as tithing to observe and consecration seeing how the people live with "all things in common" and the people are promised rewards to be known as a son "in that day when I make up my jewels" or the same"white stone with the new name", that John in Revelation speaks of.

When God appears to Moses in the Pearl of Great Price is another example of the endowment being given in the scriptures.

The amazing point here is that while many critics of the LDS Church claim that Joseph Smith plagiarized the LDS endowment from Masonry, it is marvelous that all the fundamental elements of the endowment are demonstrated over and over again in the Book of Mormon long before Joseph Smith was acquainted at all with Masonry. Yes, Masonry did influence Joseph Smith to ask questions about certain aspects of the endowment, but the endowment was represented again and again in the Book of Mormon long before Joseph Smith new anything about Masonry.

Measure the Pattern of the Temple

Ezek. 43: 10 Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern.

God shows us the purpose of the temple in Ezek 43:10. Here God is showing Ezekiel a large Old Testament, Aaronic Priesthood, Law of Moses type temple and asks Ezekiel to "measure the pattern." Ezekiel is told to make careful notice of the form, function, fashion, and ordinances of the temple. Why? Because the temple is a model and pattern. In this case, the OT temple was to make Israel ashamed and remind them of their unworthiness and need for a Messiah.

LDS, New Testament, Everlasting Covenant, Melchizedek Priesthood Temples work in the same way. Like the OT temples, they point to Christ, but they are of a different model and pattern. Instead of just pointing to our unworthiness before God and need for a Savior, the NT temple also promises sanctification and teaches how sanctification through Christ can be possible in Christ.

Unfortunately, many outsiders and even LDS insiders have an unfortunate misunderstanding of the message of the NT Temple. Unfortunately, some believe that LDS think that by going through the ritual of the temple that that some how guarantees salvation or a greater reward in heaven. Many think that the temple is somehow evidence that LDS believe we can save ourselves or that the grace of Christ is not fully sufficient.

This is not what the temple is about at all. Yes, LDS feel that God has given the NT temple as a gift of His grace to draw us to Christ and therefore it is necessary to receive any gift of grace from God. We are commanded to live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God and this includes never refusing any of God's gifts of grace. However, like Ezekiel's OT temple, the LDS NT temple and everything that is done within the temple is symbolic. Therefore, it is not the ritual itself that guarantees anything, but what the symbols represent. And it is the acceptance of these truth's that gives us a hope of a greater reward in heaven (1 Cor. 12: 31, Matt. 6: 20, Heb. 11: 35).

So, what does the temple symbolize?

1. The temple points first and foremost to Christ. Only though Christ can anyone hope to return to the presence of the Father.

2. The temple presents God's plan of salvation. The temple presents the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and how God commanded that angels with flaming swords guard the way of the tree of life.

3. The temple teaches how a person through Christ can be empowered to pass by the angels and partake of the tree of life again and dwell in the presence of the Father. Remember in Revelation that it says that to those who overcome, Christ would confess their name before the Father and the angels. What angels? Why would Christ need to confess our name before angels? Who are these angels that need Christ's confession? I don't know exactly. Maybe they are the same cherubim that God commanded guard the way of the tree of life (Luke 12: 8, Rev. 3: 5).

4. John in Revelation comments that the Everlasting covenant would be given to all kingdoms, nations, tongues and people. And this is represented by both males and females being set apart as was Aaron. As part of the New Testament and Everlasting Covenant, the higher priesthood or Melchizedek priesthood is promised to all worthy who accept Christ and not just the eldest birthright son or those of a certain tribe.

Therefore all those who enter in the temple go through a ritual and symbolic washing, anointing, clothing in priestly robes as Aaron and his sons did. In the OT temple only Aaronic and Levitical priesthood priests went through this. But in the NT Temple, everyone enjoys a priesthood of all believers. Therefore, all believers because of Christ can be washed clean and prepare to enter the Holy of Holies like the High Priest. This is why John in Revelation says that in preparation for the tribulation all believers would receive a special "sealing in the forehead" and be set apart kings and priests unto God (Rev. 7: 3, Rev. 9: 4).

5. John in Revelation asks the angel who all the people where in the temple dressed in white robes. Aaronic priests didn't wear white in the temple, only the High Priest did who passed into the Holy of Holies. All other priests wore undergarments and robes of blue, red, purple and gold
(coats of many colors) symbolizing their sins. John was told that those wearing white and serving in the temple in the Last Days represented those who had had been washed clean by the blood of Jesus Christ. And John comments that the white clothing represented the "righteousness of the Saints" (Rev. 7: 14, Ps. 132: 9, Rev. 19: 8).

6. In the OT temple, only the High Priest was permitted to enter into the Holy of Holies. The High Priest was dressed in white and passed around the 4-in thick and 60-ft tall veil embroidered with angels into the Holy of Holies after sprinkling himself with the blood of the Passover sacrifice. But in the NT temple, the veil is thin, and nearly see-through, with many partitions representing how God tore the veil at Christ's crucifixion.

While God remains veiled to the wicked, to those who properly accept Christ and are properly washed clean in His blood, they are permitted to easily pass through the veil into the presence of God. The veil of the OT temple tore top to bottom, but it did not fall to the ground. Brigham Young stated that going to the NT temple was necessary to be enabled to pass by the angels who stood as sentinels to the tree of life. The same angels depicted on the OT veil and as depicted shadowing the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant. But what about this passing through the veil. What is the symbolism and significance of this part of the temple ritual?

7. When LDS Apostles and Prophets and Scripture talk about the Day of Judgement, and passing the angels, they don't talk about needing to know the answer to any specific question. What the Apostles and what the scriptures, and what the temple represents is that all mankind will one say be brought to stand before God. By the power of Christ's atonement all mankind will be brought to stand before God to make an accounting of His life and the responsibilities and promises (talents) they had received from God (Matt. 25: 15-28).

And what LDS Apostles remind us is that what we need to remember is not any specific answer to any specific question, but that God will instead ask us about how we went about helping and serving our wife. God will ask us how we went about helping and serving each of our children individually, and God will ask us how we went about helping and serving our neighbors and community. This is what God really will want to know. And this is what God promises, that if we accept Christ, Christ will empower us to answer sufficently by His grace.

And this is what the ritual in the LDS temple represents and what so many have unfortunately misunderstood. Remember, it is not about the ritual and symbols themselves. The ritual and symbols change with the times as language and meaning changes. But the underlying message of Christ is what is important.

Temple of the New Testament and Everlasting Covenant

When most Christians or Jews think of the temple, they think of Solomon's temple in Jerusalem; destroyed by Babylon, rebuilt by Zerrubabel and expanded by Herod, then destroyed again by Titus and the Roman Empire. Also, most Christians think of the temple and temple ritual as part of the Law of Moses. The Law of Moses involved many outward ordinances and ritual which foreshadowed details of the life of Jesus Christ but which was made obsolete after Christ's atonement, death and resurrection. While the Law of Moses and ritual animal sacrifice was done aways with, the idea and utility of the temple and temple ritual actually are not limited to the time between Moses and Jesus Christ. In fact, a few scripture passages speak of temples in existence in the days of Enoch as well as being rebuilt in the Last Days. So, while the death of Jesus Christ made animal sacrifice obsolete, His death did not make the purpose of the temple obsolete. That purpose being to point our souls to Christ, which is just as important now as it was then.

Many Christians have adopted a radical “all I need is Christ” doctrine to the exclusion of temples, priesthood, church organization, apostles, prophets, helps, governments, ordinances, water baptism, communion of the Lords Supper, and the laying on of hands. These say; “what does God need with a temple?” Doesn't the Bible say that God does not dwell in any temples built with mens hands? But we know that God's presence dwelt in Solomon's temple. We also know that when a person,who processes the power and authority of Gods holy priesthood, does something when commanded and empowered by God, it is as if God had done it Himself. That person is merely acting as an instrument in the hands of God. Therefore, a temple built by the command of God, by those duly authorized with the Holy Priesthood of God, is built by God and not man. Nevertheless, God though his grace and mercy has given man the temple not because He needs it but because we need it.

Some Christians do believe that the Jews will rebuild their temple before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. However, their view of this rebuilt temple in Jerusalem is a negative one. Many associate this future temple with prophecies about an Antichrist who they believe will sit on a throne within this temple and rule the world, perform counterfeit miracles, blaspheme the name of God, and lead many believers astray. While I cannot rule this scenario out completely if the Jews were to build an obsolete OT-style temple, the prophecies of the future temple God promises to build, on the other hand, are wonderful and positive. Could there be a case of mistaken identity at work here? Could Christians be looking for the wrong kind of temple, like the Jews in the meridian of time were looking for the wrong kind of Savior?

Ezek 43:10-12 Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern. And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof: and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them. This is the law of the house; Upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

Here Ezekiel is shown and told to measure the size of a great temple. But, if you do the calculations, this temple is much, much bigger than any of the temples at Jerusalem. This temple is so big it actually measures the size of a large city or small country. Could this be Enoch's temple, or could Ezekiel have been shown a temple that would be built in the future? Some are of the opinion that Ezekiel was shown a temple in heaven. But we know from John in Revelations that there are no temples in heaven (Rev 21:22). There are no place set aside in heaven as Holy. All of heaven is holy. If there is a place set aside, then it be a small place set aside for the wicked in hell. Regardless of where and when Ezekiel's temple existed, the spiritual significance being taught here is that the details of the temple are symbolic. The pattern of the temple, its form, fashion, and ordinances point to Christ in some way. And by meditating on these truths the temple serves as a powerful gift and instrument to teach us about God, and His great plan of happiness. And as we learn these important truths, we are changed, sanctified, perfected and made holy.

Isa. 2: 2-3 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain )of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
Dan 2:34-35, 44 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. . . . and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain (a temple), and filled the whole earth. . . . And in the days of these kings (iron and clay = Last Days) shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

God reveals to Daniel and Isaiah more about the temple that will be built in the Last Days. In the days of those kings represented by the iron mixed with clay, a stone is cut out of the mountain without hands that will grow until it becomes a great mountain (temple) and fill the whole Earth. We know that the temple is referred to as a mountain, or the mountain of the Lords house. The idea here is that the idea of the temple is scalable. It begins with ourselves. We are temples for the Holy Ghost. And then it grows to a sacred and holy building, then a temple city, a holy nation, until the whole Earth becomes purified and sanctified. This will be the great work during the Millennium. The temple will serve to sanctify the whole Earth and all souls upon it so that by the time of the end of the Millennium, Christ will deliver His work to the Father and there will be a new Earth and a new heaven, when the Earth is fully transformed from its Paradisaical and Millennial state to a Celestial state which John describes the new Earth as a “sea of glass mingled with fire”

Ezek 37:26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

Here, God reveals to Ezekiel details about a the future temple that will precede the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. We know God is not referring to an OT temple, because God tells Ezekiel that this future edifice which God refers to as His sanctuary and tabernacle would be everlasting, and also that it would administer the everlasting covenant. Well we know that this could not be referring to any OT temple because these temples only administered the preparatory Levitical covenant and the Law of Moses. This future temple would not be an OT temple, but designed after a more excellent pattern, form, and covenant. While the OT Temple served to make Israel ashamed of her sinfulness and need for a Savior it did not sanctify. The NT Temple, on the other hand, promised to both justify, sanctify and perfect Israel through the blood of Christ.

Heb. 7: 11, 19 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? . . . For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.

What is the everlasting covenant of the restored Christian temple and how does this covenant sanctify and change us? Christ clearly tells us what the higher covenant is in the New Testament.

Matt 19: 16-21 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

This invitation of Jesus Christ to the rich young man is the everlasting covenant. After restating the commandments of the Law of Moses, the young man asked “what lack I yet.” Christ responded that if he would be perfect, that the man must consecrate his life to God. This dedication to God is the everlasting covenant of the restored temple that promises to sanctify and perfect God's people. And we see the Early Saints enter into this covenant as they instituted a type of communalism with all things in common setting all their Earthly wealth at the feet of the Bishop and withholding nothing.

When John in Revelations talks about Gods people in the Last Days before the tribulation, he says that right before God is about to unleash the tribulation on the Earth, an angel arises to stop the 4 angels and says " hut not the earth until we have sealed the servants of God in their forehead." Later John says that the 4 angels are not given power to hurt those who are "sealed in their forehead". So we see that while Satan is marking his people with the "mark of the beast" God is "sealing" his servant in the forehead. This angel mentioned in Revelations is the angel depicted on top of LDS temples.

Rev. 7: 2-3 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
Rev. 9: 4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
Isa. 11: 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.
Rev. 14: 6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

The NT Temple differs from the OT Temple in many ways. One such difference is the nature of temple sacrifice. Some Christians mistakenly think that Christ's atonement did away with the law of sacrifice. In reality, Christ fulfilled the Law of Moses and did away with ritual animal sacrifice, but not the law of sacrifice itself. Instead of your best lamb or goat, what God expects is the complete sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit or in other words, a willing heart and mind (Ps. 34: 18). This goes along with the covenant of consecration spoken of above.

You should also remember that in the OT temple only Levities and sons of Aaron were priests. When God appeared to Moses in the burning bush, all the Elders of Israel were invited up into the mountain. God originally desired to establish the everlasting covenant with Israel and make all the people a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Ex. 19: 6). However, the Elders feared to go into the mountain and told Moses “Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die” (Ex. 20: 19). So, only Levities and Sons of Aaron were washed, anointed and clothed as priests unto God. But in the NT Temple, all who are worthy to enter are made priests and kings after the manner of Aaron.

Ex. 40: 12-13 And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water. And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.
Heb. 5: 4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.

LDS have been commanded by God to build NT temples across the face of the Earth. There are currently 129 operating temples with 8 under construction and 9 announced to be build. Many Christians misunderstand the Bible to teach that there is to only ever be one temple in Jerusalem. One temple, given to one nation, kindred, tongue and people. However, they forget the prophecy of John in Revelations that in the Last Days when the everlasting covenant is given to the Gentiles, that it would be made available to all nations, kindreds, tongues and people and not just one nation and the priesthood to one tribe. And this is why the LDS church is building Christian NT temples which dot the globe. Already we see the prophecy of Daniel being fulfilled as small rock cut out of the mountain without hands is getting ready to fill the Earth.

Those who enter into the temple do not wear the same color clothing as they did the OT Temple. Many don't realize that OT temple priests didn't dress in white. Their robes were multicolored like Joseph's coat of many colors. Aaronic priest robes were red, purple, blue and yellow. This was to remind the Jews of their uncleanness before God, and their need for a Savior. This is how the Law was their schoolmaster. But in Revelations the angel asks "who are all these dressed in white robes?" And the answer is that they have been washed or sanctified in the blood of Jesus Christ and serve Christ in his temple. So, in the NT Temple, everyone is to wear white. John tells us in Revelations that the white is to remind us that we have been washed clean in the blood of Jesus Christ, and to inspire us to good works and purity of thought and deed.

Ex. 28: 2-6 And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. . . And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen. And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work.
Rev. 7: 9-15 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; . . . And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
Rev. 3: 5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. (who are these angels that require Christ's confession?)
Rev. 19: 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The veil of the OT temple and the NT temple is also different. You will remember that at the death of Jesus Christ, the Bible says that the temple veil was torn down the middle. This was no small feat. The OT temple veil was 60 feet high and 4 inches thick beautifully embroidered with blue, scarlet and purple thread. It was also designed with cherubim who represented angelic guardians shielding access to God. (Exodus 26:31). Only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. In contrast, the NT veil is to be white, and made of sheer material so that you can almost see through it. Also, the NT temple veil is to have partitions in it allowing those who have been washed, and anointed and clothed as was Aaron the ability to pass through the veil, and by the angels into the presence of God. While some incorrectly infer that the God tearing the veil of the temple means the end of the temple, the Bible teaches the significance of the torn veil is that the blood of Christ has finally bridged the eternal chasm between man and God.

And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. (Mark. 15:37-38)

The purpose of the everlasting covenant and Christ's atonement is not to simply sweep our sins under the rug. Christ's atonement is not only grace but also transformative power to change us, purify us like silver, turn us away from sin and change our heart such that we have no more disposition to do evil but to do good continually. You and I rightly admit that we are not completely sanctified yet. However, the Melchizedek priesthood temple has been given to help us complete the process of sanctification "in this world" and in the Millennium. The temple helps us overcome the flesh, change and sanctify us in 3 ways.

#1. The restored temple covenant reveals to man who God is, who we are, and our relationship to God. When a person has a spiritual realization of the true nature of God, and that we are all spiritual children of God with infinite potential; the light of this knowledge and eternal possibility makes the enticings of sin pale in comparison.

#2. The temple provides an eternal prospective as it reveals to us the stages of the plan of salvation including the pre-existence, creation, the fall, the millennium, judgment and hope of eternal life. By going through the progression of the plan of salvation and understanding where our lives fit into eternity, we realize our true purpose to accept Christ and His word. Again when we see how short life is in perspective of the whole of eternity, sin loses any attractiveness.

#3. The Christian temple is a space set aside as holy and pure from the world. As a quiet and reverent place set aside, a person is enabled to enjoy and experience the light and power of the Holy Ghost and the infinite love of Jesus Christ. As we feel the pure love of Christ for us, we are strengthened against sin. And as a result, the allure of any brief pleasure that comes from sin pales in comparison to a taste of eternal glory and happiness.

The eternal perspective of the temple is why the scriptures refer to the temple as the "Mountain of the Lords House." The restored temple or "Mountain of the Lord's House" gives us an eternal perspective of who God is, who we are in God's eyes, our relationship to God, our eternal and infinite potential, the majesty of God's power and creation, God's mercy in sacrificing His Son Jesus Christ, and our important and individual role and calling in God's plan. And it is this eternal perspective, the love of God that we feel, and the atoning blood of Jesus Christ that has the power to transform us, give us new hearts, make us new creatures, purify our hearts like silver, turn us away from sin, overcome the flesh, and destroy any disposition to do evil but empower us with an unquenchable desire to do good continually. This is the true power, grace, and promise of the infinite and eternal atonement of Jesus Christ. This is the new model and pattern of the NT temple.