Doctrine and Covenants 76
“Great Shall Be Their Rewards and Eternal Shall Be Their Glory”
July 7 - July 13
scripture
quotes
"A Rough-Hewn Regimen to Bear"
<p>Another fundamental scripture describes Jesus’ having trodden the winepress of the “fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God” (D&C 88:106, see also D&C 76:107; D&C 133:50). Others can and should encourage, commend, pray, and comfort, but the lifting and carrying of our individual crosses remains ours to do. Given the “fierceness” Christ endured for us, we cannot expect a discipleship of unruffled easiness. As we seek forgiveness, for example, repentance can be a rough-hewn regimen to bear. By the way, let us not, as some do, mistake the chips we have placed on our own shoulders for crosses!</p>
Neal A. Maxwell, "Plow in Hope," April 2001 General Conference.
"He…Saves All the Works of His Hands"
<p>God’s doctrine shows that all of us are His children and that He has created us to have joy. Modern revelation teaches that God has provided a plan for a mortal experience in which all can choose obedience to seek His highest blessings or make choices that lead to one of the less glorious kingdoms. Because of God’s great love for all of His children, those lesser kingdoms are still more wonderful than mortals can comprehend (See D&C 76:89). The Atonement of Jesus Christ makes all of this possible, as He “glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands” (D&C 76:43).</p>
Dallin H. Oaks, "Two Great Commandments," October 2019 General Conference.
The Mighty Change of Heart
<p>Part of the mighty change of heart among the people of King Benjamin who took upon themselves the name of Christ was that their eyes were opened to “great views.” Those who inherit the celestial kingdom are individuals who “see as they are seen” (D&C 76:94).</p>
Robert C. Gay, "Taking Upon Ourselves the Name of Jesus Christ," October 2018 General Conference.
The Possibility of Eternal Life
<p>After judgment comes the possibility of eternal life—the kind of life that our Heavenly Father lives. His celestial realm has been compared with the glory of the sun. (See 1 Corinthians 15:41; D&C 76:96). It is available to all who prepare for it, the requirements of which have been clearly revealed: “Ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2 Nephi 31:20).</p>
Russell M. Nelson, "Doors of Death," April 1992 General Conference.
"Merciful Account"
<p>“For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts” (D&C 137:8–9).</p> <p>God thus takes into merciful account not only our desires and our performance, but also the degrees of difficulty which our varied circumstances impose upon us. No wonder we will not complain at the final judgment, especially since even the telestial kingdom’s glory “surpasses all understanding” (D&C 76:89). God delights in blessing us, especially when we realize “joy in that which [we] have desired” (D&C 7:8).</p>
Neal A. Maxwell, "According to the Desire of [Our] Hearts," October 1996 General Conference.
Spirit of Worship
<p>The temple is a place of worship. Reverence is a supernal form of worship. It is the form of worship that is found in the celestial kingdom. In the vision of the degrees of glory given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, this celestial worship was described with these words:</p> <p>“And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, … where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever; Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever” (D&C 76:92–93).</p> <p>Our worship in the temple is in preparation to live in the presence of our Heavenly Father and His Son. We should worship Them in a spirit of humility and in a spirit of reverence.</p>
L. Lionel Kendrick, "Enhancing Our Temple Experience," April 2001 General Conference.
commentaries
Commentary on D&C 76:89–93
<p>One of the vision’s grand themes is the mercy of God. These verses state that even the glory of the telestial kingdom, the lowest and furthest from God, surpasses all understanding. The world we live in is often spoken of as telestial. Imagine this world, with all of its beauty and wonder, with no war, famine, hunger, disease, poverty, or death. And this is the place where those “who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers” (D&C 76:103) are destined to dwell!</p> <p>The benevolence shown in the vision was a stumbling block for some of the early Saints. Brigham Young later recalled, “When God revealed to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon that there was a place prepared for all, according to the light they had received and their rejection of evil and practice of good, it was a great trial to many, and some apostatized because God was not going to send to everlasting punishment heathens and infants, but had a place of salvation, in due time, for all, and would bless the honest and virtuous and truthful, whether they ever belonged to any church or not. It was a new doctrine to this generation, and many stumbled at it.”<a id="_ftnref1" class="see-footnote" title="" href="#_ftn1">[1]</a> Brigham’s brother Joseph was even more blunt is his assessment of the vision, declaring, “When I came to read the visions of the different glories of the eternal world, and of the sufferings of the wicked, I could not believe it at the first. Why the Lord was going to save everybody[!]”<a id="_ftnref2" class="see-footnote" title="" href="#_ftn2">[2]</a></p> <div class="footnote"> <p class="footnote"><a id="_ftn1" class="foottnote-label" title="" href="#_ftnref1">[1]</a> <em>Journal of Discourses</em>, 16:42.</p> <p class="footnote"><a id="_ftn2" class="foottnote-label" title="" href="#_ftnref2">[2]</a> <em>Deseret News</em>, March 18, 1857, 11.</p> </div>
Doctrine and Covenants Minute by Casey Paul Griffiths
Commentary on D&C 76:94–97
<p>The vision boldly proclaims that those who become part of the Church of the Firstborn will receive a fulness of the Savior’s grace and become His “equal in power, and in might, and in dominion” (D&C 76:95), becoming “joint-heirs with Jesus Christ” (Romans 8:17). In an 1844 discourse Joseph Smith exhorted the Saints, saying, </p> <blockquote> <p>You have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be Kings and Priests to God . . . heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. What is it? to inherit the same power, the same glory, and the same exaltation, until you arrive at the station of a God, and ascend the throne of eternal power the same as those who have gone before. What did Jesus do? Why I do the things I saw my Father do, when worlds came rolling into existence. My Father worked out his kingdom with fear and trembling, and I must do the same, and when I get my kingdom I shall present it to my Father, so that he may obtain kingdom upon kingdom, and it will exalt Him in glory. He will then take a higher exaltation, and I will take his place, and thereby become exalted myself.<a href="#_ftn1" id="_ftnref1" title="" class="see-fotnote">[1]</a></p> </blockquote> <div class="footnotes"> <p class="footnote"><a href="#_ftnref1" id="_ftn1" title="" class="footnote-label">[1]</a> JS History, vol. E-1, p. 1971, JSP. </p> </div>
Doctrine and Covenants Minute by Casey Paul Griffiths
Commentary on D&C 76:98–106
<p>The description of the vision returns here to the glory of the telestial. This portion of the vision highlights the emptiness of a life lived in opposition to God. It points out that the telestial “suffer the wrath of God <em>on earth</em>” (D&C 76:104; emphasis added), confirming Alma’s teaching that “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10). It also points out the sad truth that many who are outwardly religious are among the most involved in sin. The poetic version of the vision reads:</p> <blockquote> <p>These are they that came out for Apollos and Paul;</p> <p>For Cephas and Jesus, in all kinds of hope;</p> <p>For Enoch and Moses, and Peter, and John;</p> <p>For Luther and Calvin, and even the Pope.</p> <p>For they never received the gospel of Christ,</p> <p>Nor the prophetic spirit that came from the Lord;</p> <p>Nor the covenant neither, which Jacob once had;</p> <p>They went their own way, and they have their reward.<a href="#_ftn1" id="_ftnref1" title="" class="see-footnote">[1]</a></p> </blockquote> <p>This is not to say that those who find Christ through Apollos, Paul, Luther, Calvin, or the Pope are not true Christians. The warning is that those who glorify mortal messengers but do not build their faith on Jesus Christ are building on a sandy foundation (Helaman 5:12). Devotion to a single person, ideology, or philosophy outside of the gospel of Jesus Christ does not bring salvation.</p> <div class="footnotes"> <p class="footnote"><a href="#_ftnref1" id="_ftn1" title="" class="footnote-label">[1]</a> Poem to William W. Phelps, between circa 1 and circa 15 February 1843, p. 83, stanza 70–71, JSP.</p> </div>
Doctrine and Covenants Minute by Casey Paul Griffiths
