The Endowment | Part Two
Sacred Symbols and Prayer
When you joined the Church, you received two ordinances—baptism and confirmation. The temple endowment is also received in two parts.
​
In the first part, you privately receive the initiatory ordinances, which include special blessings about your divine heritage and potential. You are also authorized with the sacred privilege of warding the temple garment and instructed to wear it throughout your life.
​
In the second part, you receive the rest of your endowment in a group setting. This part covers events from the plan of salvation, like the Creation, the Fall of Adam and Eve, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the Apostasy, and the Restoration. You'll learn how everyone can return to the presence of the Lord. The whole endowment experience is a symbolic journey back into the presence of God, showing us how we can one day be welcomed back into His presence forever.
Sacred Symbols
God uses the ordinances of the priesthood to teach us important truths about becoming like Him. We don't see all these truths at once. It will take many visits to the temple before we start to understand the full picture of the gospel.
​
Just like spending more time with someone makes their traits rub off on you, the same happens with the temple. The more you worship in the House of the Lord and interact with Him through sacred ordinances, the more you start to see things as He does and become more like Him.
As you learned in an earlier study guide, even the temple's architecture teaches us about its purpose. Inside, the Lord uses symbols to teach us. For example, in ancient times, the Israelites brought their best labms to the temple as a sacrifice. But as Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught, the animal sacrifice was simply "a token, a prefiguration of the great and last sacrifice of Christ which was to come."
​
The Lord still uses physical symbols to teach us spiritual truths. When connected to ordinances, these symbols, or tokens, are used to help us learn more about Jesus Christ.
​
President Russell M. Nelson has taught: "In the temple, we learn something of the unique pattern by which the Lord teaches His children. Here we make sacred covenants; in turn, the Lord emphasizes the importance of those covenants by giving us special signs and tokens. This pattern … is equally evident in many scriptural examples. Coupling a covenant with a sign or a token is an instructional model often employed by the Master Teacher.
"Recognition of a pattern among creators is expected. They all have their individual styles. A person familiar with the music of Beethoven, for example, can easily recognize his pattern of composition. One acquainted with the art of Van Gogh can readily identify his style of painting. So it is with this instructional model of the Lord.
"In the temple, He uses covenants, signs, and tokens. The same pattern is evident in holy writ" (“Teachings, Covenants, and Signs,” Salt Lake Temple Devotional, October 11, 1998).
As you take part in the endowment ordinance, focus on listening to the Holy Ghost. When you come prepared and ready to learn, the Holy Ghost will use the symbols in the endowment to teach you about your special covenant connection with Jesus Christ.
​
To help you see how the Lord teaches us through physical symbols or tokens:
Study:
​
Ponder:
-
What do the physical symbols or tokens in these verses teach you about the Savior?
Along with physical tokens, the Lord also teaches us through signs. For example, President Russell M. Nelson has taught: "I learned from the scriptures that my conduct and my attitude on the Sabbath constituted a sign between me and my Heavenly Father (see Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:12, 20). With that understanding, I no longer needed lists of dos and don’ts. When I had to make a decision whether or not an activity was appropriate for the Sabbath, I simply asked myself, “What sign do I want to give to God?” That question made my choices about the Sabbath day crystal clear" (Russell M. Nelson, "The Sabbath is a Delight," general conference, April 2015).
​
In priesthood ordinances, there are symbols or signs that teach us more about the covenant we are making. As an example, when we are baptized by immersion in the water, it is a sign of our willingness to follow Jesus Christ. When you ponder the sign of being buried in the water and coming forth again, what does that sign teach you about the covenant you are making with the Lord?
When you partake of the sacrament, the Lord uses tokens like bread and water to teach us about Him. What is the action you take as you partake of the sacrament--what is the sign? As you physically take the bread and water inside of your body, that is a sign that can teach you about your covenant connection with the Lord. As you ponder the sign of eating and drinking the tokens or emblems of the sacrament, what do you learn about your covenant connection with the Lord? Take a moment to ponder those questions, and let the Holy Ghost teach you. You'll be glad you did.
King Benjamin taught his people to take upon themselves the name of Christ. When we are baptized and again when we partake of the sacrament, we witness that we are willing to take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ (see 2 Nephi 31:13-14; Moroni 4-5). ​
​
Additionally, Elder David A. Bednar taught: “Elder Dallin H. Oaks has explained that in renewing our baptismal covenants by partaking of the emblems of the sacrament, ‘we do not witness that we take upon us the name of Jesus Christ. [Rather], we witness that we are willing to do so. (See Doctrine & Covenants 20:77.) The fact that we only witness to our willingness suggests that something else must happen before we actually take that sacred name upon us in the [ultimate and] most important sense’ (“Taking upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ,” Ensign, May 1985, 81). ... 
“...The process of taking upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ that is commenced in the waters of baptism is continued and enlarged in the house of the Lord” (David A. Bednar, “Honorably Hold a Name and Standing,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2009, 97–98). 
​
Somtimes, names are another way the Lord teaches us symbolically. To prepare to learn through the use of names:
​
Study:
​
Ponder:
-
What do you learn about the Savior and about your possible relationship with Him as you more fully take upon yourself His name?
Temple robes of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are worn only inside the house of the Lord and are used for the highest ordinances. White symbolizes purity. Men and women wear similar clothing in the temple. The temple clothing is symbolic and reflects teachings from the Old Testament.
​
President Nelson has said: "If you would really like to know more about the antiquity of temple clothing, find it out for yourself in the Old Testament. The Old Testament is replete with references to special clothing of the temple. In the last book of the New Testament, you will find reference again to temple clothing: “What are these which are arrayed in white robes? … and serve him day and night in his temple” (Revelation 7:13, 15). Temple clothing is unique, and it is special. It lets us carry the temple and its meaning with us in our daily lives (“Why Temples?” Mount Timpanogos Utah Temple Dedication, session eleven, October 15, 1996).
​
If you would like to learn more about the temple clothing, you might consider spending some time in Exodus chapters 28 and 39. This video might also be helpful:
​
President Nelson has urged us with these words: "to each of you who has made temple covenants, I plead with you to seek—prayerfully and consistently—to understand temple covenants and ordinances. Spiritual doors will open. You will learn how to part the veil between heaven and earth, how to ask for God’s angels to attend you, and how better to receive direction from heaven. Your diligent efforts to do so will reinforce and strengthen your spiritual foundation" (Russell M. Nelson, "The Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation," general conference, October 2021).
​
Ancient temples of the Old Testament times had a sacred veil that separated the rest of the temple from an even more sacred place in the temple that represented the presence of God. Near the temple veil was an altar, reminding Israelites of the importance of prayer to prepare to enter the presence of God. Special prayers of faith are offered in the house of the Lord today as well. Just like other parts of the endowment, the prayers offered in the temple can teach you more about Jesus Christ.
​
In the Old Testament temples, only the high priest was allowed to enter through the veil and only once a year on a day called the Day of Atonement. However, when Jesus Christ sacrificed His life on the cross, the veil of the temple in Jerusalem was torn in half, representing the Savior's parting the veil on our behalf. Jesus Christ's infinite Atonement has opened the way for all of God's willing children to enter back into the presence of Heavenly Father.
​
In the book of Hebrews we learn that the veil itself is a symbol (Hebrews 10:17-20). The veil represents Jesus Christ. No one can pass into the presence of the Father without going through the Son. Each time you worship in the temple, seek to learn more about the purpose of the veil and of its sacred connection to the temple garment. President Nelson recently taught that your garment is symbolic of the veil (see Russell M. Nelson, “Enter into Thy Closet,” seminar for new mission leaders, Missionary Training Center, Provo, Utah, 26 June 2022).
Ponder and Discuss:
-
Why do you think the Lord prefers to teach us by the Spirit rather than just telling us the meaning of every symbol in the temple?
Learning Activity:
To more deeply understand the initiatory ordinances of the temple endowment, consider going back through this study guide and selecting some additional scriptures to spend more time with. You might choose to write down some of your thoughts and the things you learn in a personal journal or include them as notes next to the verses in the Gospel Library app.
