Dedicated Spaces
One of the primary focuses of Sections 94-97 in the Doctrine and Covenants is about building structures with specific purposes. One for the work of the Presidency of the church, another for a print shop, and of course, a temple. One thing they all have in common is that they are to be dedicated to the Lord, “And it shall be wholly dedicated unto the Lord for the work of the presidency. And ye shall not suffer any unclean thing to come in unto it; and my glory shall be there, and my presence shall be there. But if there shall come into it any unclean thing, my glory shall not be there; and my presence shall not come into it.”
There is a lot more that I could say about the purpose of the temple in this message, but I want this to be short and stick to one central point.
We have been taught that the two most sacred spaces we can enter are the temple and our homes. Great care is taken to maintain a spirit of reverence in the temple. These things include the environment of peace and beauty, cleanliness, quiet voices, smiles, and a loving attitude. Our homes are not necessarily quiet all the time, but all the other attributes of the temple can exist in our homes.
What I am suggesting is that we strive for holiness in our homes. “And it shall be dedicated unto the Lord from the foundation thereof, according to the order of the priesthood, according to the pattern which shall be given unto you hereafter.” We can have our homes dedicated in this manner. Those homes where the Melchizedek priesthood is present can be dedicated to the Lord by that authority. If there is no one holding those keys of authority in the home, worthy ministers or other authorized men can dedicate the home.
After a home is dedicated to the Lord, “And ye shall not suffer any unclean thing to come in unto it; and my glory shall be there, and my presence shall be there. But if there shall come into it any unclean thing, my glory shall not be there; and my presence shall not come into it.”
I don’t need to say any more about this other than it is up to us to maintain holiness in our homes.
Happy Sunday.