9/3/2018 - Section 109:1-14

September 3, 2018

Section 109:1-14

Temple Building, Temple Dedication, Kirtland Temple, Worthy Way of Living, Sacrifice, Temple Attendance and Attitude, Lord’s Suggested Ways of Living,

The Kirtland Temple was build at a “time when the saints were few and poor, and when to raise the money required (between sixty and seventy thousand dollars) meant a great deal of self-sacrifice on their part. ‘While the brethren labored in their departments,’ says Tullidge, ‘the sisters were actively engaged in boarding and clothing workmen not otherwise provided for—all living as abstemiously as possible, so that every cent might be appropriated to the grand object.’ And thus they toiled on from the 23 of July 1933, when the corner stones were laid until it was completed for the dedication.” (p270) The date of the dedication was March 27, 1836—nearly 3 years of so many people living in the most frugal way possible while giving all excess monies to the temple fund.” That is true, and freely offered, self-sacrifice!

This section contains the dedicatory prayer given to Joseph Smith by revelation and read at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple. The student manual (p270-271) gives a lovely history of the spiritual occurrences that accompanied this dedication. President Heber C Kimball spoke of these divine manifestations seen by the saints and also by the people of the neighborhood. This time of glorious manifestations “continued several days and was attended by a marvelous spirit of prophecy. Every man’s mouth was full of prophesying, and for a number of days and weeks our time was spent in visiting from house to house, administering bread and wine, and pronouncing blessings upon each other to the degree, that from the external appearances one would have supposed that the last days had truly come, in which the Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon all flesh.”

The first line of the dedicatory prayer (v1) contains succinct advice on how we should live each day: “O Lord…who keepest covenant and showest mercy unto thy servants who walk uprightly before thee, with all their hearts.”

Then comes specific advice from the Lord, given to His “friends” (v6). 

--Teach others diligently (v7) “as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith.” To see learning by study AND by faith is a more complete education of the Lord’s ways.

--Organize yourselves; working to establish a house of prayer, fasting, faith, learning, glory & order.(v8)

--Make sure that your incomings and outgoings may be in the name of the Lord…and this verse ends with “uplifted hands unto the Most High” which takes my thoughts directly to being in the temple. (v9)

--Ask for the Lord’s assistance of His grace (v10). How seldom I ask for that in my prayers! And yet this is what he wants us to do!

--And in v 13 He tells us how we should enter into His temple when we are doing His work: “And that all people who shall enter upon the threshold of the Lord’s house may feel thy power, and feel constrained to acknowledge that thou has sanctified it, and that it is thy house, a place of thy holiness.”

9/30/2021 – D&C 109:1-42

This section is a prayer—the prayer given by Joseph Smith at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple. Joseph said that this prayer was given to him by revelation. The saints started the building of this temple on July 23,1833. And now, on March 27 1836, the temple is completed! 

My Come Follow Me book has a statement that I loved: “There were no altars and no baptismal font, and ordinances like baptism for the dead and sealing had not yet been restored. But the blessings described in section 109, the dedicatory prayer for the Kirtland Temple, are the blessings we receive in the Lord’s house today.”

V 1 tells me the kind of life that my Heavenly Father wants me to have, because that way of living will bring me closer to His love and His mercy: for He “showest mercy unto thy servants who walk uprightly before thee, with all their hearts—” If we keep our covenants with Him, He will most surely keep His covenants with us!

The Lord does not promise us that our path with always be easy and light. These early Saints learned much about that: “For thou knowest that we have done this work through great tribulation; and out of our poverty we have given of our substance to build a house to thy name, that the Son of Man might have a place to manifest himself to his people.” (v 5) The Saints had completed a great work, and yet there is still much more to be done: “And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith; Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing, and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God; That your incomings may be in the name of the Lord, that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord, that all. Your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most High” (v’s 7-9)

In v 12-15 we learn that the miraculous events of the dedication, and the blessings of the temple, were prayed for:  “That thy glory may rest down upon thy people, and upon this thy house, which we now dedicate to thee, that it may be sanctified and consecrated to be holy, and that thy holy presence may be continually in this house. And that all people who shall enter upon the threshold of the Lord’s house may feel thy power and feel constrained to acknowledge that thou has sanctified it, and that it is thy house, a place of thy holiness. And do thou grant, Holy Father, that all those who shall worship in this house may be taught words of wisdom out of the best books, and that they may seek learning even by study, and also by faith, as thou hast said; And that they may grow up in thee, and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost, and be organized according to thy laws, and be prepared to obtain every needful thing;”

In v 21 He reminds us to watch our ways and be alert and repentant any time we swerve away from them: “And when thy people transgress, any of them, they may speedily repent and return unto thee, and find favor in thy sight, and be restored to the blessings which thou hast ordained to be poured out upon those who shall reverence thee in thy house.” 

V 22 tells of the protection we obtain through temple work: “And we ask thee, Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power, and that thy name may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine angels have charge over them;”

V 23 tells us how working in the temple can increase our knowledge and our testimony: “And from this place they may bear exceedingly great and glorious tidings…that they may know that this is thy work, and that thou hast put forth thy hand, to fulfil that which thou has spoken by the mouths of the prophets, concerning the last days.”

V 33 is a plea from the saints for the help of the Lord “…that we may rise up in the midst of this generation and do thy work.”

V 38 -39 looks forward to His help during the Last Days of our earthly experience: “Put upon thy servants the testimony of the covenant…and prepare the hearts of thy saints for all those judgments thou art about to send…that thy people may not faint in the day of trouble….that they may come forth to Zion, or to her stakes, the places of thine appointment, with songs of everlasting joy;”