Read all D&C 124.
The church cannot go on thinking they received covenant blessings. When a clear headed review of church history clearly says otherwise.
See the example of how the Lord commands a people to build an acceptable temple. And he clearly stated that the fullness of priesthood, or the light which begun among them, a "fullness of His gospel" rejected, was removed from them, after the Kirtland Temple was established and accepted. You can see what great things would actually take place in that finished temple.
They were clearly told that if they don't finish the Nauvoo temple in time, that they would be rejected as a church, including any temple work like baptisms for the Dead, and suffer covenant curses.
28: For there is not a place found on earth that He may come to and restore again that which was lost unto you, or which he hath taken away, even the fulness of the priesthood.
31 But I command you, all ye my saints, to build a house unto me; and I grant unto you a sufficient time to build a house unto me; and during this time your baptisms shall be acceptable unto me.
32 But behold, at the end of this appointment your baptisms for your dead shall not be acceptable unto me; and if you do not these things at the end of the appointment ye shall be rejected as a church, with your dead, saith the Lord your God.
33 For verily I say unto you, that after you have had sufficient time to build a house to me, wherein the ordinance of baptizing for the dead belongeth, and for which the same was instituted from before the foundation of the world, your baptisms for your dead cannot be acceptable unto me;
The good stuff that will come if they finish the temple in time:
41 For I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times.
This was the Church's Chance to come out from under condemnation, and have the fullness restored unto them again. Their chance to repent for the mistakes before. Causing them to fail to redeem Zion in other lands.
44 If ye labor with all your might, I will consecrate that spot that it shall be made holy.
45 And if my people will hearken unto my voice, and unto the voice of my servants whom I have appointed to lead my people, behold, verily I say unto you, they shall not be moved out of their place.
46 But if they will not hearken to my voice, nor unto the voice of these men whom I have appointed, they shall not be blest, because they pollute mine holy grounds, and mine holy ordinances, and charters, and my holy words which I give unto them.
47 And it shall come to pass that if you build a house unto my name, and do not do the things that I say, I will not perform the oath which I make unto you, neither fulfil the promises which ye expect at my hands, saith the Lord.
48 For instead of blessings, ye, by your own works, bring cursings, wrath, indignation, and judgments upon your own heads, by your follies, and by all your abominations, which you practice before me, saith the Lord.
The Nauvoo temple was never finished. The only two men who held actual Prophet status and sealing power, chose to go back to Carthage. They knew what would happen. And why was that? Because they learned that the Lord had rejected the people.
All of the Covenant curses the Lord mentions here, took place.
They were moved out of their place, again.
The sealing power was removed from them, and was never really given a chance to be used because the temple wasn't finished.
Their prophet, seer and revelator, left the people. They lost their Moses when they needed him the most.
THESE ARE COVENANT CURSES, NOT BLESSINGS.
Nothing new was revealed to the people since 1844. No more scripture. No hidden things coming to light. And worse, the teachings of men were taught as doctrines and principles of the gospel. Bringham Young was racist. And strongly so. Joseph Smith was an anti-racism presidential candidate, baptizing black people, gave a couple of african decendants the priesthood in his day, baptized some, and was even inviting a black woman to live in The Nauvoo House. Brigham Young was the serial polygamist, taking young brides and other men's wives for himself. Teaching the church that they all needed to live that, to go to the highest celestial kingdom. They made up the lies that Joseph Smith was living it (he was only performing family connections), so they could claim some kind of safe haven under the amendment of religion. They taught suicide or blood atonement, at a later time, and if the members weren't not doing that for themselves then the leaders were putting that in their own hands.
The church leaders know they don't have answers. They know that they don't have keys to ask and receive. They rely on church scholars. The church office building employees.
Yet they claim to hold the same keys as Joseph Smith. Those keys left the Earth in 1844. Yes some priesthood remained, just enough so that an LDS remnant could wake up to their awful situation as a group. The holy priesthood from the days of Joseph Smith, was preserved under lesser Aaronic level keys. And everyone who was a descendant of Abraham, has the right by father and son lineage, to hold those things.
The church has been in the wilderness. The heavens are as brass to them. That doesn't mean that they or lay members don't have occasional promptings of this Holy Ghost. That can happen anywhere.
But when a people labor, to prop up a flowery pilgrim history among themselves, instead of seeing the clear curses that have in fact transpired since then, and continue building unauthorized temples, and trying to pretend they still hold all the keys to do tempo ordinances or redemption for the dead, and sealling families together... They think they have all they need. But it is in vein.
The keys of the priesthood that are to get answers from the Lord. If the church claimed to hold those higher keys since 1844, well this is the whole point of keys. To ask and receive. To get communications in holy places. Revelation. The Lord directing them personally.
The church and their dead were rejected in 1844. Joseph and Hyrum chose to leave the people. Hyrum did not choose one of his righteous sons to take his place as church head patriarch (which was the only way the church would have any kind of sealing authority in acceptable temples) even though they knew what would happen if they went back. That goes father to son. Joseph Smith did not elect a new prophet for the church. They knew the church was rejected. And they chose to leave at that time. And they offered their lives as a sacrifice, so that some of their descendants in the future, would wake up to the truth, and get the fullness back.
That has been happening for many years now. From among the last place for the Lord last set his hand.
The sifting of the wheat from out of the tares. The corn from the chafe. That great division within the church that has so often talked about.
WERE ARE YOU? TRUTH IS MADE CLEAR TO YOU... BUT IT'S ACCEPTANCE IS BASED ON YOUR READINESS, NOT JUST AVAILABILITY. So evaluate inwardly, and YOU figure out why you are not ready to see what other wheat see, here what they here...
The wheat are first spiritually gathering. A new Covenant by God has been given them and named: Covenant Christians.
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