Lesson 19: The Plan of Salvation – Scriptures and Quotes

Reading 1 – Hugh Nibley writes about an early member of the Church named Clement and a conversation Clement has with the Apostle Peter: "Clement has his first gospel conversation with Peter, who begins by explaining to him why a prophet is necessary. Peter compares the world in which we live to a great house filled with dense smoke—blinding smoke produced by human unbelief, malice, ambition, greed, etc. Because of this smoke, the people who live in the house can see nothing clearly, but we must imagine them groping about with weak and running eyes, coughing and scolding, bumping into each other, tripping over furniture, trying to make out a bit of reality here and there—a corner, a step, a wall—and then trying to fit their desperate and faulty data together to make some kind of sense." ("A Prophet's Reward", Hugh W. Nibley, The Maxwell Institute, Brigham Young University, citing Clementine Recognitions I, 3,)

Reading 2 – Joseph Smith taught: "All men know that they must die. And it is important that we should understand the reasons and causes of our exposure to the vicissitudes of life and death, and the designs and purposes of God in our coming into the world, our sufferings here, and our departure hence. What is the object of our coming into existence, then dying and falling away, to be here no more? It is but reasonable to suppose that God would reveal something in reference to the matter, and it is a subject we ought to study more than any other. We ought to study it day and night, for the world is ignorant in reference to their true condition and relation. If we have any claim on our Heavenly Father for anything, it is for knowledge on this important subject." (TPJS, 324)

Reading 3 – Joseph Smith taught: “The great plan of salvation is a theme which ought to occupy our strict attention, and be regarded as one of heaven’s best gifts to mankind” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 68)

Reading 4 – Doctrine and Covenants 93:29

Reading 5 – Doctrine and Covenants 76:23-24

Hebrews 12:9

Reading 6 – Elder Russell M. Nelson has taught, "The entire Creation was planned by God. A council in heaven was once convened in which we participated. There our Heavenly Father announced His divine plan. It is also called the plan of happiness, the plan of salvation, the plan of redemption, the plan of restoration, the plan of mercy, the plan of deliverance, and the everlasting gospel. The purpose of the plan is to provide opportunity for the spirit children of God to progress toward an eternal exaltation.

The plan required the Creation, and that in turn required both the Fall and the Atonement. These are the three fundamental components of the plan. The creation of a paradisiacal planet came from God. Mortality and death came into the world through the Fall of Adam. Immortality and the possibility of eternal life were provided by the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement were planned long before the actual work of the Creation began."

Abraham 3:24-25

Reading 7 – 2 Nephi 2:24-27

Reading 8 – Moses 5:10-12

Reading 9 – Alma 34:8-9

Reading 10 – Moses 4:1-2

Moses 4:3

Elder Dallin H. Oaks has said, speaking to us as Heavenly Father might, “All that I have I desire to give you—not only my wealth, but also my position and standing among men. That which I have I can easily give you, but that which I am you must obtain for yourself. You will qualify for your inheritance by learning what I have learned and by living as I have lived. I will give you the laws and principles by which I have acquired my wisdom and stature. Follow my example, mastering as I have mastered, and you will become as I am, and all that I have will be yours.” (Ensign, Nov. 2000, p. 32).

Reading 11 - Elder James E. Talmage said: "This life is ofttimes, and very properly, referred to as a probation. 'And we will prove them' the Lord says, putting us upon test, to see whether we will exercise our agency in choosing to do whatsoever the Lord our God requires of us. The Lord wants to know about that. Perhaps His foreknowledge shows the result to Him, but it is necessary that we demonstrate it. There is much work ahead of us, and the Lord desires to know whom He can trust with authority and power beyond the grave, so this probationary period has been provided that we may prove and demonstrate beyond all question as to whether we can be trusted, as to whether we shall be entitled to the welcome: Well done; you have been faithful over what may have seemed to be a few things, and perhaps relatively small things, but you have been proved and you have shown that you can be trusted with many and greater things" (C.R., October 1929, p. 66).

Elder Bruce R. McConkie has written, "In this mortal probation it is the design and purpose of the Lord to test us: to see if we will believe in him and obey his laws now that we no longer dwell in his presence, hear his voice, and see his face. He already knows how we respond - what we believe and how we act - when we walk by sight. Now he is testing our devotion to him when we walk by faith: when his presence is veiled, his voice is afar off, and his face is seen by few men only" (Elder Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p. 84).

Elder Bruce R. McConkie wrote, "Is it inappropriate to ask: Why are there different races of men? Why is there a white, a yellow, and a black race? In the days of Israel's first bondage, why did the Lord send some spirits in the lineage of enslaved Jacob and others to their Egyptian overlords? Why were some spirits sent to earth among the Amalekites, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians, while others at the same moments found birth in the house of Israel? Why was Antipas sent as the son of a debauched and evil Herod, while John the Baptist came into the home of a priestly Zacharias and a saintly Elisabeth?

"All of these things operate by law; they are the outgrowth of long years of personal preparation in preexistence on the part of each individual; they come to pass according to the laws that the Lord has ordained. This second estate is a continuation of our first estate; we are born here with the talents and capacities acquired there. Abraham was one of the noble and great spirits in the premortal life. He was chosen for his mortal ministry and position before he was born, and as with the father of the faithful so with all of the spirits destined to be born as his seed." (A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p. 512)

Reading 12 – Alma 40:11-14

Reading 13 – Regarding those who are righteous at the time they enter the spirit world, Elder Bruce R. McConkie has said, "There is no equivocation, no doubt, no uncertainty in our minds. Those who have been true and faithful in this life will not fall by the wayside in the life to come. If they keep their covenants here and now and depart this life firm and true in the testimony of our blessed Lord, they shall come forth with an inheritance of eternal life.

"We do not mean to say that those who die in the Lord, and who are true and faithful in this life, must be perfect in all things when they go into the next sphere of existence. There was only one perfect man—the Lord Jesus whose Father was God.

"There have been many righteous souls who have attained relative degrees of perfection, and there have been great hosts of faithful people who have kept the faith, and lived the law, and departed this life with the full assurance of an eventual inheritance of eternal life." (Bruce R. McConkie, “The Dead Who Die in the Lord,” Ensign, Nov 1976, 106)

Lesson 17: The Law of Tithing and the Law of the Fast – Scriptures and Quotes

Doctrine and Covenants 59:16

Malachi 3:10  

Doctrine and Covenants 64:23

In April Conference, 1920, Elder Orson F. Whitney said, " When white-winged peace would spread her wings abroad, and grim-visaged war would sit at her feet and learn wisdom for a thousand years. We think that time is drawing nigh; that the Almighty has set His hand to accomplish just such a work; that we are living in the Saturday night of the world's history, near the end of that week of Time each day of which is a thousand years, and that the seventh day, or Sabbath, will be the day of rest, the Millennium , the reign of peace and righteousness which the Prophets and the poets have predicted."

Reading 1 – Doctrine and Covenants 119:3-4

Reading 2 - The First Presidency has given the following definition of tithing: “The simplest statement we know of is the statement of the Lord himself, namely, that the members of the Church should pay ‘one-tenth of all their interest annually,’ which is understood to mean income. No one is justified in making any other statement than this” (First Presidency letter, 19 Mar. 1970).

Reading 3 - President Joseph Fielding Smith of the Quorum of the Twelve explained: “It is remarkable how many excuses can be made and interpretations given as to what constitutes the tenth. … It is written, however, that as we measure it shall be measured to us again. If we are stingy with the Lord, he may be stingy with us, or in other words, withhold his blessings” (Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 2:92).

Reading 4 – Malachi 3:8-9

Reading 5 – Malachi 3:10-12

Reading 6 - Elder John A. Widtsoe of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke of spiritual blessings that come when we pay tithing:  “The tithe-payer establishes communion with the Lord. This is the happiest reward. Obedience to the law of tithing, as to any other law, brings a deep, inward joy, a satisfaction and understanding that can be won in no other way. Man becomes in a real sense a partner, albeit a humble one, with the Lord in the tremendous, eternal program laid out for human salvation. The principles of truth become clearer of comprehension; the living of them easier of accomplishment. A new nearness is established between man and his Maker. Prayer becomes easier. Doubt retreats; faith advances; certainty and courage buoy up the soul. The spiritual sense is sharpened; the eternal voice is heard more clearly. Man becomes more like his Father in Heaven” (in Deseret News, 16 May 1936, Church Section, 5).

Reading 7 - Elder Dallin H. Oaks said: “During World War II, my widowed mother supported her three young children on a schoolteacher’s salary that was meager. When I became conscious that we went without some desirable things because we didn’t have enough money, I asked my mother why she paid so much of her salary as tithing. I have never forgotten her explanation: ‘Dallin, there might be some people who can get along without paying tithing, but we can’t. The Lord has chosen to take your father and leave me to raise you children. I cannot do that without the blessings of the Lord, and I obtain those blessings by paying an honest tithing. When I pay my tithing, I have the Lord’s promise that he will bless us, and we must have those blessings if we are to get along’ ” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1994, 43–44; or Ensign, May 1994, 33).

Reading 8 - On May 30, 1899, President Lorenzo Snow spoke to the officer's meeting of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association. He delivered a discourse on the principle of tithing and the following resolution was adopted by the conference:  "Resolved: That we accept the doctrine of tithing, as now presented by President Snow, as the present word and will of the Lord unto us, and we do accept it with all our hearts; we will ourselves observe it, and we will do all in our power to get the Latter-day Saints to do likewise"

  After the adoption of the resolution, President Snow arose and said: "Brethren, the God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bless you. Every man who is here, who has made this promise, will be saved in the celestial kingdom. God bless you. Amen" (Comprehensive History of the Church, 6:359).

Elder Dallin H. Oaks said: “[Tithing] funds are spent to build and maintain temples and houses of worship, to conduct our worldwide missionary work, to translate and publish scriptures, to provide resources to redeem the dead, to fund religious education, and to support other Church purposes selected by the designated servants of the Lord” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1994, 46; or Ensign, May 1994, 35).

Reading 9 – Isaiah 58:6-12

Reading 10 – Doctrine and Covenants 59:13-14

Reading 11 - President Spencer W. Kimball said: “Sometimes we have been a bit penurious [unwilling to share] and figured that we had for breakfast one egg and that cost so many cents and then we give that to the Lord. I think that when we are affluent, as many of us are, that we ought to be very, very generous … and give, instead of the amount we saved by our two meals of fasting, perhaps much, much more—ten times more where we are in a position to do it” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1974, 184).

President Gordon B. Hinckley said: “Think … of what would happen if the principles of fast day and the fast offering were observed throughout the world. The hungry would be fed, the naked clothed, the homeless sheltered. Our burden of taxes would be lightened. The giver would not suffer but would be blessed by his small abstinence. A new measure of concern and unselfishness would grow in the hearts of people everywhere” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1991, 73; or Ensign, May 1991, 52–53).

Doctrine and Covenants 59:21