I like to teach Exodus 25-31 by first starting out talking about why the Lord wanted them to have a tabernacle in the first place, and then liken this to our day to show why the Lord has us build temples today. Exodus 29:42-45 and D&C 97:15-17 are excellent versesContinue Reading

The longest allegory in scripture is Zenos’ allegory of the olive, which is found in Jacob 5. In Jacob 5:3, Zenos explains to his hearers that the tame olive tree represents the house of Israel. From this interpretation, we can draw some conclusions about the other symbols in Zenos’ allegory.Continue Reading

From 91 B.C. to A.D. 31, the Nephites were governed by a series of judges. This time period gives many examples of the of how the Nephites constantly fluctuated in their level of commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. This overview of the Nephite cycle of righteousness and wickedness canContinue Reading

“Salvation does not come all at once; we are commanded to be perfect even as our Father in Heaven is perfect. It will take us ages to accomplish this end, for there will be greater progress beyond the grave, and it will be there that the faithful will overcome allContinue Reading

I love the allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob 5. It can be read so many ways. I will be posting a podcast to this text that will hopefully be helpful to all of us in the next few days. Zeno’s Allegory of the Tame and Wild Olive Trees,Continue Reading

I would like to call your attention to what happens to a man in this church when he is converted to the truth. I hope you are all converts. I was in a meeting not long ago and I asked how many were converts. Probably fifty per cent raised theirContinue Reading

John Tvedtnes and David Bokovoy shared some thoughts regarding a few passages in Helaman 15 that I want to share. In verses 1-4 we read that, “the people of Nephi hath he loved, and also he hath chastened them… but my brethren, the Lamanites hath he hated because their deedsContinue Reading

Angels do not present themselves to men unless there is need. It is not their task to gratify our curiosity. We have no scriptural accounts of angels undertaking any service for man that man could have done without the assistance of the angel. With the plentiful precedents presented for examinationContinue Reading

In 1 Nephi 11-14 the prophet Nephi has a vision of the Tree of Life and its interpretation. An unnamed angel takes him through the vision, acting as a teacher explaining various parts of the vision to him. “And it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; andContinue Reading