BYU-I Term Paper
Submitted for Old Testament Course
The Purpose of Mortality
Robert D. Hales: As a father, I put my arms around each of my boys as they left to serve their missions and whispered in their ears, ‘Return with honor.’ I can picture our Father in Heaven putting His arms around each of us as we left His presence and whispering, ‘Return with honor.’
Each of us was in the presence of loving and caring Heavenly Parents that taught and nurtured us. While there, we grew line-upon-line and progressed as far as possible. There came a day in which our progression – progression toward becoming like our Heavenly Parents – could continue no further. This stop in progression was, in part, caused because our Heavenly Parents had both body and spirit inseparably connected; we did not. Just as with them, it would be essential for us to gain bodies in order to progress toward becoming gods and goddesses. In the Doctrine and Covenants we read,
For man is spirit. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receive a fullness of joy; and when separated, man cannot receive a fullness of joy (D&C 93:33-34).
We were told of the plan to come to earth and we rejoiced in the opportunity it would provide for us. We knew it would allow us to gain bodies, which likewise meant growth through experiences and trials. We understood we would ultimately prove worthy of the greatest blessing of godhood through righteous parenthood. During the following, we will touch on each of these subjects.
After having a basic understand of what happened before we came to earth, we are able to gain a more accurate idea of why our earthly existence is necessary.
Brigham Young: Could the Lord have glorified his children in spirit, without a body like his own, he no doubt would have done so (11:43).
In this statement, Brigham Young helps us see the importance of mortal bodies and the role they play in the process toward perfection. Why are they essential? Because it is only through a mortal body that we are able to gain specific knowledge not otherwise made available. Likewise, it was necessary to pass through specific mortal experiences.
Though we have now been given a body, we still cannot progress without going through the earthly experiences that accompany these earthly bodies. Spencer W. Kimball explains that we must “face the challenge to overcome self.” Brigham Young expanded on this by explaining that these experiences come through opposition in all things.
Brigham Young: Facts are made apparent to the human mind by their opposites. We find ourselves surrounded in this mortality by an almost endless combination of opposites, through which we must pass to gain experience and information to fit us for an eternal progression . . .. If man could have been made perfect, in his double capacity of body and spirit, without passing through the ordeals of mortality, there would have been no necessity of our coming into this state of trial and suffering (11:42).
Thus, our bodies act as a ‘conduit’ through which certain experiences become possible. The 'experiences' referred to include that of proving ourselves worthy of Eternal Life. The Lord stated,
We will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them. (Abraham 3:24-26)
George Q. Cannon explains more concerning this earthly state of mortality (the second estate) and the trials associated with it in the following words:
Now you are in your second estate, and you are going to be tested again. Will you be true and loyal to God with the curtain drawn between you and Him, shut out from His presence, and in the midst of darkness and temptation, with Satan and his invisible hosts all around you, bringing all manner of evil influences to bear upon you? The men and the women that will be loyal under these circumstances God will exalt, because it will be the highest test to which they can be subjected (George Q. Cannon).
We must, in these less-than-ideal circumstances, “train our bodies, our minds, and our spirits” (Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 31).”
How can we prove ourselves worthy? Richard G. Scott explains that
our proving grounds vary. Some of us are born with physical limitations; others are lonely or do not enjoy good health. Some are challenged by economic conditions, the lack of good parental example, or a myriad of other things that test our mettle (Richard G. Scott).
So then, how do we prove ourselves worthy of the highest blessings of godhood? We do so through being a
loving parent. . . .There are no greater roles in life for a man than those of husband and father. Likewise, there are no greater roles for a woman than those of wife and mother (Russell M. Nelson, p. 306).
This is perhaps the most important test we will ever pass through. This is the greatest reason for earth life. N. Eldon Tanner explains this in the following:
The whole purpose of the creation of the earth was to provide a dwelling place where the spirit children of God might come and be clothed in mortal bodies and, by keeping their second estate, prepare themselves for salvation and exaltation. The whole purpose of the mission of Jesus Christ was to make possible the immortality and eternal life of man. The whole purpose of mothers and fathers should be to live worthy of this blessing and to assist God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ in their work. (N. Eldon Tanner)
Thus, we see there are many reasons for mortality, and we undoubtedly still do not have a full comprehension of all the reasons. Future revelation will be necessary to do this.
The Fall of Adam and Eve
We must come to earth in the progression toward godhood. Therefore, a problem occurs with the creation of the earth being in a paradisiacal state. How will we pass through trial if there is none? The answer: the fall!
Joseph Fielding Smith: We find Adam in the Garden of Eden with the promise that he can live there, he can stay there, he can enjoy himself as far as possible under the conditions, as long as he wants to, as long as he does not do something he is told not to do, and that is to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He was told that in the day that he was to eat of that fruit he would surely die.
We find, then, Adam’s status before the fall was:
1. He was not subject to death. (2 Ne. 2:22)
2. He was in the presence of God. (Moses 5:10)
3. He had no posterity.
4. He was without knowledge of good and evil” (Moses 5:11)
Such were the circumstances of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It is uncertain just how long Adam and Eve stayed in the Garden, but at some point Lucifer was permitted to enter in and tempt Adam and Eve into disobeying the laws the Lord had established. After failing in the attempt to persuade Adam, Lucifer succeeded when he approached Adam’s wife.
“And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.” (1 Tim. 2:14) Satan’s deception in this situation was in like form to the temptations of today. It was not blatant, but rather cunning, similar to Satan’s crafty lies of today which are mingled with scripture. In the account, this is shown as Satan speaks through a serpent (the most subtle of all creatures) and says “Ye shall not surely die (this is a lie): For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as the gods, knowing good and evil (this is truth).” (Genesis 3:4-5) Eve’s reaction to this helps us to understand our own course through life.
“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it became pleasant to the eyes, . . .” (Moses 4:12). Prior to this, we may imply that it was not desirous to her. Therefore, we see that temptation has entered the Garden and the human mind; temptation to do that contrary to the direction of the Father. Prior to this, she was without great trials, for the pull between good and evil had not existed. This is similar to our coming to earth. As we enter the world and take upon ourselves these worldly bodies of flesh, we are tempted in ways we had never before experienced.
Orson Pratt explains why the temptation of this fruit was necessary.
Orson Pratt: The tree of knowledge of good and evil was placed there that man might gain certain information he never could have gained otherwise; by partaking of the forbidden fruit he experienced misery, then he knew that he was once happy, previously he could not comprehend what happiness meant, what good was; but now he knows it by contrast, now he is filled with sorrow and wretchedness, now he sees the difference between his former and present condition, and if by any means he would be restored to his first position, he would be prepared to realize it, like the man that never had seen the light.
It was so with Adam; let the way be prepared for his redemption, and the redemption of his posterity, and all creation that groans in pain to be delivered--let them be restored back again to what they lost through the fall, and they will be prepared to appreciate it (1:286).
Thus, we see that through understanding the opposite, Adam and Eve longed for the joy and happiness they had once had but not realized. This produced the desire and longing to return to that previous state.
In consequence to Adam and Eve’s transgression, God had to follow through with the attached consequences. Joseph Fielding Smith describes these consequences as follows:
Adam’s status after the fall was:
1. He was banished form the presence of God and partook of the spiritual death. (2 Ne. 9:8-9)
2. He also partook of the temporal or physical death. (2 Ne. 9:6-8)
3. He gained knowledge and experience — knowledge of good and evil.
4. He obtained the great gift of posterity” (2 Ne. 2:23)
(Joseph Fielding Smith 1:111).
As we see here, the effects of the fall were all reverse to the conditions of the terrestrial earth. Likewise, all the effects were necessary in creating an earth in which the purpose of mortality could be carried out.
King Benjamin explains another new trial in the following way:
For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, for ever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint . . . (Mosiah 3:19).
Here we learn another effect that came upon man in response to the fall: The Natural Man. The Natural Man is that which encourages us to be “carnal, sensual, and devilish, by nature” (Alam 42:10). Though each of us has been born into a “fallen” condition, the transgression committed by Adam will not fall upon our heads and condemn us (A of F #2).
Each of us will feel the effects of the fall through physical death and through temptation of the natural man, but this does not eliminate our agency to choose between right and wrong. “But there is a possibility that man may fall from grace and depart from the living God (D&C 20:32).” When we choose wrong (Romans 3:23), we then enter into a personal fall, which will necessitate conditional grace and redemption.
The Atonement of Christ
(Sacrifice of Adam, Exodus Typology, The Tabernacle)
When discussing the conditions of conditional and unconditional grace (and redemption), we can turn to Joseph Fielding Smith for the best clarification and differentiation.
Conditional redemption is also universal in its nature; it is offered to all but not received by all; it is a universal gift, though not universally accepted; its benefits can be obtained only through faith, repentance, baptism, and the laying on of hands, and obedience to all other requirements of the gospel.
Unconditional redemption is a gift forced upon mankind which they cannot reject, though they were disposed. Not so with conditional redemption; it can be received or rejected according to the will of the creature.
Redemption from the original sin is without faith or works; redemption from our own sins is given through faith and works. Both are gifts of free grace; but while one is a gift forced upon us unconditionally, the other is a gift merely offered to us conditionally. The redemption of the one is compulsory; the reception of the other is voluntary. Man cannot, by any possible act, prevent his redemption from the fall; but he can utterly refuse and prevent the penalty of his own sins (2:10).
Here we see some of the blessings of the atonement of Jesus Christ. Through His sacrifice, we all will be redeemed of the fall and will all have the opportunity of salvation from personal sins.
Much symbolism is found within different events of the Old Testament concerning the sacrifice of Christ and the regaining of the presence of the Father after this life. We will take a moment to analyze a few of them.
After Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden, they built an altar to the Lord and Adam offered sacrifices of the firstling of the flock at the altar. When an angel from heaven descended to ask him why he was doing so, he responded unsure. The angel instructed Adam in the following:
This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth. Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore (Moses 5:7-8).
Through this experience, Adam learned that it would be through the atonement (or sacrifice) of Christ that he would have an opportunity for salvation. Likewise, he learned that regaining the Lord’s presence would not be an instantaneous thing, but rather a process.
This process of regaining the Lord’s presence can also be seen through two other examples. The first is that of the Tabernacle. The tabernacle, or “Ohel Mo’ed” (as it was called in Hebrew) would act as the Tent of Feasting; the Tent of Meeting; the Tent of Reunion. It was within this Tabernacle that the Lord would instruct the officiator in the ways that would lead him to regain the Lord’s presence.
Unfortunately, the Israelites did no stay worthy of the blessing of officiating (due to the apostasy), and thus depended on the priesthood men to officiate on their behalf. Its original function would have allowed those to spiritually prepare for the Celestial Kingdom, while being lead through important steps (ordinances) that would teach them how to apply the atonement more fully and enter into being “one” or “at-one-ment” with God through Christ.
The second example was that of the Exodus. The method by which the Israelites were freed was through the last curse – the curse of the first-born. An angel would come through the land and kill the first-born child of every household – only one escape was provided: All who believed could sacrifice a blemishless lamb (the Savior) and put the blood on the door-posts to symbolize the household is one that believes and applies the “blood of the Lamb.” Through doing so, the Israelites were freed from the Egyptian bondage (sin of the world).
These examples clearly show the importance of applying the blood of Christ in the process of being freed from sin and bondage in order to regain the presence of the Lord. An important question still remains though. How can each of us become partaker of the conditional redemption provided by the Savior?
The answer is given to Adam by the Lord:
Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children, saying: That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory; For by water ye keep the commandment; by the spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified (Moses 6:59).
In other words, through the ordinances of the priesthood we are able to partake in the salvation provided through Christ.
Adam and the Gospel Ordinances
(The Holy Order)
Adam, not fully understanding the reasons for baptism, asked a question that would help him understand the specific reasoning for this ordinance of baptism (Moses 6:53). The Lord answered by saying, “Behold I have forgiven thee thy transgression in the Garden of Eden. Hence came the saying abroad among the people, that the Son of God hath atoned for original guilt, wherein the sins of the parents cannot be answered upon the heads of the children” (Moses 6:53-54). The Lord instructed Adam in the ways of unconditional redemption so that he might be aware of personal accountability (including personal fall and conditional redemption). He did this by explaining that “they [all people] are agents unto themselves . . . that all men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God (Moses 6:55).” This established in Adam’s mind the need for a personal redemption.
Adam’s personal redemption came through a specific pathway of ordinances; today we likewise have the pathway in which we may regain the Lord’s presence. The Book of Mormon discusses this pathway.
For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost. And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which witnesseth of the Father and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive (2 Ne. 31:17-18).
This is the very path Adam underwent (Moses 6:64-66).
Joseph Smith explained what the effects would be if someone were never to travel the path of entering into the Lord’s covenants.
Joseph Smith: All men who become heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ will have to receive the fullness of the ordinances of the kingdom; and those who will not receive all the ordinances will come short of the fullness of that glory, if they do not lose the whole (Teachings, p. 304).
While Adam was being instructed in and entering into these covenants, he likewise was commanded to teach these very things to his future posterity, that they might could also enter into the presence of the Lord (Moses 6:59). In order for them (the posterity) to enter into these covenants (for they no longer would be in God’s presence as Adam was), someone would need the authority of God to perform such an ordinance. Gordon B. Hinckley demonstrates this by saying the following: “When a convert comes into this church he must be baptized in the name of Jests Christ, by immersion, by one holding the proper priesthood” (35). This would necessitate an officiator (one holding the priesthood) to be able to perform these ordinances. Adam was logically chosen, since his receiving the Melchizedek Priesthood was necessary to his own salvation also.
President Ezra Taft Benson describes both this need and how it was fulfilled.
Adam and his posterity were commanded by God to be baptized, to receive the Holy Ghost, and to enter into the order of the Son of God. (See Moses 6.) To enter into the order of the Son of God is the equivalent today of entering into the fullness of the Melchizedek Priesthood, which is only received in the house of the Lord.
Three years before Adam's death, a great event occurred. He took his son Seth, his grandson Enos, and other high priests who were his direct-line descendants, with others of his righteous posterity, into a valley called Adam-ondi-Ahman. There Adam gave to these righteous descendants his last blessing.
Adam and his descendants entered into the priesthood order of God. Today we would say they went to the House of the Lord and received their blessings (8-10).
Thus we see that Adam entered into the necessary covenants for personal redemption and likewise gave that opportunity to others through passing on the Melchizedek Priesthood that he held.
The priesthood Adam had was the same that is able to provide every ordinance necessary to gaining eternal lives. This would also include that of celestial marriage —the highest covenant we can enter into as mortals.
The Role of Man and Woman
(Adam and Eve)
Shortly after Adam’s creation, the Lord saw that man was alone and needed a companion. The Lord planned to create an “ezer kenegdo” or “opposite counterpart” (help meet) for Adam. All the Animals were before Adam and he named each and was given dominion over all of them, but there was no opposite counterpart within the animals before him (Moses 3:18-20). Today we refer to this dominion as the priesthood. Eve was not found among the beasts and animals because Adam was not to have ruling power over her, but rather to be a co-equal with her. Such is the design and role of man and woman.
Adam was not able to receive all the priesthood ordinances (sealed to a wife) without Eve there. Therefore, his progression would have been limited and his gaining Eternal Lives would have never been possible; such is the design of the Master. Therefore, by having man and woman become “bone to [his] bones, and flesh of [his] flesh,” Adam and Eve became husband and wife (Moses 3:23-25).
In The Proclamation to the World,
the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of his children . . . (Proclamation).
In the book of Psalms, we learn that "children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3).
As husband and wife, they prepare for the most sacred opportunity of mortality —raising a family in a household of faith. The Lord commanded them to “be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” (Genesis 1:28.) Spencer W. Kimball emphasized this commandment today by saying,
the Lord does not waste words. He meant what he said. You did not come on earth just to ‘eat, drink, and be merry.’ You came knowing full well your responsibilities. You came to get for yourself a mortal body which could become perfected and immortalized, and you understood that you were to act in partnership with God in providing bodies for other spirits equally anxious to come to the earth for righteous purposes. And so you will not postpone parenthood [after marriage]. (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 325)
In a First Presidency Message called Parenthood, they re-emphasize this commandment by saying:
Amongst His earliest commands to Adam and Eve, the Lord said: 'Multiply and replenish the earth.' He has repeated that command in our day. He has again revealed in this, the last dispensation, the principle of the eternity of the marriage covenant. He has restored to earth the authority for entering into that covenant, and has declared that it is the only due and proper way of joining husband and wife, and the only means by which the sacred family relationship may be carried beyond the grave and through eternity. He has declared that this eternal relationship may be created only by the ordinances which are administered in the holy temples of the Lord, and therefore that His people should marry only in His temple in accordance with such ordinances. Thus, every husband and wife should become a father and mother in Israel to children born under the holy, eternal covenant.
No loftier duty than this can be assumed by mortals (First Presidency).
We learn here that this is the most important responsibility we can hold. So then, what is expected of us in our individual roles of husband/father and wife/mother? Let’s try to get an understanding of this.
First residency: Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives -- mothers and fathers -- will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.
By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners (Proclamation to the World).
Motherhood thus becomes a holy calling, a sacred dedication for carrying out the Lord's plans, a consecration of devotion to the up-rearing and fostering, the nurturing in body, mind, and spirit, of those who kept their first estate and who come to this earth for their second estate "to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them." (Abraham 3:25 ) To lead them to keep their second estate is the work of motherhood and "they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever” (op. cit.).
First Presidency: Motherhood is near to divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. It places her who honors its holy calling and service next to the angels (First Presidency Message).
First Presidency: In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners (Proclamation to the World).
Through these quotes, we begin to see the importance of husband and wife working together as “one flesh”. Thus, we likewise see why the Lord created a “help meet” for Adam and why we are to enter into the sacred covenant of being sealed to a mate for all time and eternity.
The Abrahamic Covenant
Entering into Celestial Marriage, or the Patriarchal Order, will prepare a person to have his salvation ensured through continued obedience to God’s commandments. The following is a greater explanation of this process as given by the prophet, Joseph Smith:
After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses” (379-381).
So then, how may we expect to be “thoroughly proven” to be worthy to inherit the Celestial Kingdom? We gain some insight on this through a few verses found in the Doctrine and Covenants.
For he will give unto the faithful line upon line, precept upon precept; and I will try you and prove you herewith. And whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name's sake, shall find it again, even life eternal. Therefore, be not afraid of your enemies, for I have decreed in my heart, saith the Lord, that I will prove you in all things, whether you will abide in my covenant, even unto death, that you may be found worthy. For if ye will not abide in my covenant ye are not worthy of me (D&C 98:12-15).
Therefore, they must needs be chastened and tried, even as Abraham, who was commanded to offer up his only son. For all those who will not endure chastening, but deny me, cannot be sanctified (D&C 101:4-5).
In other words, through continued trials and purification — as if through a “refiner’s fire” — we may grow bit by bit until we are prepared to receive the fullness of joy in the Celestial Kingdom.
John Taylor, in quoting Joseph Smith, explains that after many tests, there will be a test that will prove to be specific only to the individual that will prove ultimately if a man will follow the commands of the Lord.
Nevertheless, as I have said, it is necessary that we pass through certain ordeals, and that we be tried. But why is it that we should be tried? There is just the same necessity for it now that there was in former times. I heard the Prophet Joseph say, in speaking to the Twelve on one occasion: ‘you will have all kinds of trials to pass through. And it is quite as necessary for you to be tried as it was for Abraham and other men of God, and (said he) God will feel after you, and He will take hold of you and wrench your very heart strings, and if you cannot stand it you will not be fit for an inheritance in the Celestial Kingdom of God.’ Some people have wondered why so many of the Twelve fell away. God tries people according to the position they occupy. (John Taylor, 24:197)
On another occasion, John Taylor added to this by saying, “Joseph said that if God had known any other way whereby he could have touched Abraham's feelings more acutely and more keenly he would have done so. (24:264)”
So then, what blessings are so great that it would prove worthwhile to suffer through these trials? Let’s look at the blessings received by one that goes through the testing, even as Abraham.
Bruce R. McConkie: Abraham first received the gospel by baptism (which is the covenant of salvation); then he had conferred upon him the higher priesthood, and he entered into celestial marriage (which is the covenant of exaltation), gaining assurance thereby that he would have eternal increase; finally he received a promise that all of these blessings would be offered to all of his mortal posterity. (Abraham 2:6-11; D&C 132:29-50.) Included in the divine promises to Abraham was the assurance that Christ would come through his lineage, and the assurance that Abraham’s posterity would receive certain choice, promised lands as an eternal increase. All of these promises lumped together are called the Abrahamic Covenant . . .. Those portions of it, which pertain to personal exaltation and eternal increase, are renewed with each member of the House of Israel who enters the order of celestial marriage (13).
Each of the promises of the promises found within the Abrahamic Covenant have both a temporal and spiritual significance. The Eternal significance of these blessings is applicable to us today: Through entering into the Abrahamic Covenant, we are promised the promised land (the earth for the Celestial Kingdom), eternal increase through spiritual offspring, and the blessing of the priesthood throughout all generations of time.
