March- Article of Faith 3

We believe that through the atonement of Christ all mankind will be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.

The atonement is a HUGE topic and so I have studied this month in a different way.  I began studying the end of this Article of Faith before the beginning; I researched and wrote down the 'laws and ordinances of the gospel'.  Being a member my entire life I thought this would be an easier task than it proved to be.  I found that I did not understand the laws and ordinances as I thought. 

An ordinance is a sacred, formal ACT that has spiritual meaning. Ordinances are performed by the authority of the priesthood and under the direction of those who hold priesthood keys. I was speaking to Ben about the ordinances and was listing them off on my fingers.  He quickly stopped me and explained that I was speaking about Saving Ordinances, or those ordinances needed to receive exaltation, and not about ALL ordinances.  I never distinguished between a SAVING Ordinance (in more detail later) and other ordinances and when I realized this I realized that I was missing on the full meaning and blessings of these other ordinances in my life.

Again if we look at the definition of an ordinance it is an action, performed by the authority of the priesthood.  This means that any time in my life that I am using the priesthood I am participating in an ordinances. This includes priesthood blessings (for comfort or the sick), the sacrament, naming/blessing a child, dedicating a grave, receiving a patriarchal blessing and so many more.  I had never realized this before and it was a huge realization.  

Saving Ordinances are those ordinances (actions performed by the authority of the priesthood and under direction of those who hold priesthood keys) that are needed to receive exaltation (Exaltation is eternal life, the kind of life God lives).  All of the Saving Ordinances are coupled with a covenant; A covenant is a sacred agreement between God and a person or group of people.  I think of is as a contract in which God sets specific conditions, and He promises to bless us as we obey those conditions.

'Always remember and honor the covenants you make with the Lord. Then you will not need to be commanded in everything you do (see D&C 58:26–28).'

I was reading the April Ensign and there was a piece all about Covenants (how convenient).  In this article, Covenants: Two-Way Promiseswith God, the reporter went through the saving covenants and talked about their significance.  I had been trying to do that, in this chart, all month and her article was so elegantly stated, that I copied some of her thoughts into my chart!

It was harder for me to study the temple covenants because they are so sacred that they are not often talked about outside the temple.  In a BYU Devotional in November of 2005, the Apostle Robert D. Hales spoke about Temple Blessings. Here are some things he said pertaining to the saving ordinances done in the temple. "Temples are the greatest university of learning known to man, giving us knowledge and wisdom about the creation of the world. Washings and anointing tell us who we are. Endowment instructions give guidance as to how we should conduct our lives here in mortality....

The primary purpose of the temple is to provide the ordinances necessary for our exaltation in the celestial kingdom. Temple ordinances guide us to our Savior and give us the blessings that come to us through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The meaning of the word endowment is “gift.” The ordinance consists of a series of instructions on how we should live and covenants we make to live righteously by following our Savior. ...


Another important ordinance is being sealed for eternity in celestial marriage. This covenant allows children to be sealed to their parents and children born in the covenant to become part of an eternal family."

 -------

I did not leave out the atonement completely, with encouragement from our Ward Missionaries, I began reading Jesus the Christ by James E Talmage.  This book is monstrous and has been on my shelf for years.  I began at the beginning (and later decided to skip around a bit in order to get to the atonement) and as I read the first couple of chapters I saw and learned more about the first two articles of faith (that I studied earlier this year).  This realization had made me realize the role the Savior plays in my beliefs and in the foundation of the Articles of Faith and this church.  I belong to the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter Day Saints.  That means that this is HIS church in these latter days.  This seems like such a simple idea but it has really struck home as I have began studying the Articles of Faith, the basic beliefs of the church, and realized that they all are hinged and rely on my faith in Jesus Christ. 

I can't really get into all that I learned from Talmage's book (because I am not near finishing it) but I did like one quote, he said., "The atonement was plainly to be a vicarious sacrifice, voluntary and love inspired on the Savior's part... Born of a mortal mother He inherited the capacity to die; begotten by an immortal Sire He possessed as a heritage the power to withstand death indefinitely. He literally gave up His life..."No Man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself." (John 10:17-18)" I love this quote because of the words that I italicized.  He was able to live an immortal life but he CHOOSE to give up his life, not because it was his duty, but because he loves us! This was such a powerful idea to me and has made me see my Savior and his sacrifice in a different way.