The temple is a place of instruction. (D&C 94-97)

94:6

The Lord gave direction about how the temple should be built. “And it shall be dedicated unto the Lord from the foundation thereof, according to the order of the priesthood, according to the pattern which shall be given unto you hereafter.” In this case, “dedicated” means that the temple is a tribute to the Lord. It is also acknowledging the greatness of Christ. It could also mean that it is set apart for a specific purpose.

I wouldn’t mind talking about being “dedicated” in another way. How are we dedicated to the Lord? Are we dedicated “from the foundation” of our souls? What does it mean to be dedicated to the Lord? In this way, “dedicated” means that we are deeply committed, put in effort, and prioritize the Lord above all else. In these three areas, take a second and consider how dedicated to the Lord your life is.

If I am deeply committed to anything, what does that look like? Let’s say I am deeply committed to my career - what does that mean? I would definitely put in the effort and prioritize my career above other things. I would sacrifice my time. I would skip leisure time to work or practice my skill. My effort would be intense. I would be focused. I wouldn’t let days or too many consecutive hours pass without thinking about or working on my career.

Now compare that to how dedicated I am to the Lord. How is my life dedicated to the Savior? Would it be obvious to an observer that I am dedicated to Him? In what ways is that dedication evident? What would sincere dedication look like?

• I’d learn more about Him. I would be studying his words when possible. This looks like daily scripture study.

• I would strive to emulate Him. I would keep Him in mind as I made decisions. I would constantly be thinking “what would Jesus do?”

• I’d treat others as he taught. I would be Christlike throughout the day - even when driving. I’d look for opportunities to serve others as he did.

• I would be in places where I feel close to Him. This includes the temple and church meetings.

• I would regularly commit to Him. I would sincerely partake of the sacrament every week. I would use this time to reassess my efforts.

These things wouldn’t happen infrequently or intermittently. I would put in this effort every day. There wouldn’t be any “Christless” days. We should all want our lives dedicated to the Lord.

95:1

“Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you whom I love, and whom I love I also chasten that their sins may be forgiven, for with the chastisement I prepare a way for their deliverance in all things out of temptation, and I have loved you.” The Lord repeats the word “love” three times in this verse. The Lord loves us.

It’s an interesting perspective that chastening could be a “way for their deliverance in all things out of temptation.” Chastening is often the first step to repentance. The Lord doesn’t expect us to figure out every misstep we make. It’s not left to our judgment to decide whether something is wrong. The Lord can chasten us directly or through others.

Parent’s often have the responsibility to chasten those that they love - their children. Chastening is correction. If we are sincerely interested in progressing, we should welcome correction. Course corrections are the primary way towards our deliverance out of temptation. If our courses are never corrected, we may find ourselves in a completely foreign, hostile land.

Most of us aren’t getting revelations from the Lord including chastening. However, the scriptures can provide proxy-chastening - where characters are being chastened and we can put ourselves in our place and receive the same correction.

The important thing about being chastened is that we have to accept the correction. Admitting that we’ve actually done something wrong is the first step to repentance. If we want our sins to be forgiven, we must first accept that we committed sins in the first place.

95:11

“Verily I say unto you, it is my will that you should build a house. If you keep my commandments you shall have power to build it.” Keeping the commandments gives us power. We all want power to do righteous actions. Obedience is the source of power to perform righteousness. Of course.

95:12

“If you keep not my commandments, the love of the Father shall not continue with you, therefore you shall walk in darkness.” What is this saying? Is it literally saying that the love of God will discontinue if we don’t keep the commandments? No, of course it’s not saying that.

It’s saying that His love won’t be in us. He’s saying that we won’t be vessels of his love - ready to love others selflessly. We won’t see others as God sees us. Without this holy perspective, we will be truly walking in darkness.

96:5

“For behold, verily I say unto you, this is the most expedient in me, that my word should go forth unto the children of men, for the purpose of subduing the hearts of the children of men for your good. Even so. Amen.” It is eternally important for all men and women to hear the word of God. It is “most expedient” that everyone get the opportunity to accept Christ. This is “gathering Israel.” President Nelson told us that there is no greater work than this. It was true for Joseph Smith and it’s true for us.

“Subduing hearts” is an interesting phrase - but it make sense. A natural man’s heart is drawn to lust, envy, selfishness, covetousness, and idleness. the natural man’s heart can be filled with fiery anger and unrighteous passion. A natural man’s heart can be fixated on conquest or revenge. A natural man’s heart is willful - according to his own will. To subdue all of that requires the gospel of Christ.

I saw a TikTok video of a woman who’s life looked wild and crazy. Then it showed her being baptized. Then it showed her transformation. She didn’t look like the same person! She looked light-filled and bright. The transformation was incredible. To subdue our willful hearts and give them to Jesus is the best thing we can do. You can see it HERE.

97:7

“The ax is laid at the root of the trees; and every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire. I, the Lord, have spoken it.” Consider the amount of good fruit that has come from God’s choices. Our Heavenly Parents are the fountain of all goodness in this universe. They are the ultimate good example of bearing good fruit.

As we are attempting to become like them, it is important that we bring forth good fruit. It is what God does that brings him glory. It is his selfless work. It is, of course, exactly the same for us. We must become truly selfless and bear good fruit. Those of us who don’t do that are pretty useless and will never become like our Heavenly Parents.

97:8

“Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me.” That’s an interesting phrase: they “are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice.”

Consider the five covenants that we make in the temple:

1. Law of Obedience.

2. Law of Sacrifice.

3. Law of the Gospel.

4. Law of Chastity.

5. Law of Consecration.

All of these covenants, in one form or another, involve sacrifice. When we are obedient, we are sacrificing the natural man. When we sacrifice, we are obviously sacrificing our will for God’s. When we are living the gospel, we are sacrificing our various self-centered plans for the gospel plan. When we live the law of chastity, we are sacrificing our lustful desires. When we live the law of consecration, we are giving up our time, talents and everything that the Lord has blessed us with for the building up of the kingdom of God.

So, yeah, to observe the covenants we have made involves some form of sacrifice. In fact, in the temple, we learn that the law of sacrifice specifically was given in response to Adam and Eve partaking of the forbidden fruit. Clearly, sacrifice is a central part of our becoming like God. We live in a world that has many beautiful things - all of which we must be willing to sacrifice to become better. The things of this world need to mean less and less to us.

97:9

“For I, the Lord, will cause them to bring forth as a very fruitful tree which is planted in a goodly land, by a pure stream, that yieldeth much precious fruit.” We have to be the goodly land. We are the soil. We must be willing to accept the tree when it is planted.

But, we also need a constant supply from a pure stream. You can plant the best plant in fertile soil - but if you do not water that plant, it will die. As fertile soil, we cannot independently grow the plant of faith. The pure stream is Jesus Christ and his teachings. As we work to become more fertile soil, we must not forget that the pure stream of Jesus Christ is also required.

97:13-14

“For a place of thanksgiving for all saints, and for a place of instruction for all those who are called to the work of the ministry in all their several callings and offices; That they may be perfected in the understanding of their ministry, in theory, in principle, and in doctrine, in all things pertaining to the kingdom of God on the earth, the keys of which kingdom have been conferred upon you.” Is it actually true that the temple teaches so much that we could become “perfected in the understanding of our ministry?” Does it really include all that we need?

The more I attend the temple, the more I believe in this. The entire temple experience teaches all that we must understand about the plan of salvation. As we learn, the entire temple endowment is a representation of the plan of salvation - from our pre-mortal life to eternal life.

Understanding the covenants deeply is central to our progression. Every time we attend the temple, it seems like we learn something more about:

• The fall of man and necessity of Jesus Christ. We see how we cannot return to God without a Redeemer.

• How Eve loved us and Adam loved Eve to the point that they were willing to give up all that they knew for us and to progress.

• The various strategies of Satan. We see how he distracts and denies and shifts blame and tells half-truths and is quick to rebel.

• How we should view obedience.

• What it means to sacrifice.

• What the gospel really is. It’s much expanded than what I learned on my mission. In the temple we learn that it includes eight parts where we taught only five. What is to be learned from the additional three?

• What does the Law of Chastity technically mean?

• How we can live the law of consecration right now - not at some future point.

• How Christ is the way back to God’s presence.

I could list others and I could write a long report on each of these. There is a depth to what is taught that doesn’t make itself evident on your first visit. It may even seem basic and perfunctory. But if you really pay attention and be open to the Spirit, you can learn a lot about the nature of God and our place in the plan.

As this verse begins, it can be a place of thanksgiving. It is a mercy that we can attend the temple and learn and feel close to God. We are grateful for the temple.