"Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection - Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life"(Alma 40:11).
Now you know. Don't you feel better? We are all taken home to God. Then what happens next? We all just go to heaven or hell? Wrong. It's much more exciting than that!
After we die, we will all go to the spirit world. The spirit world is like a waiting room. We wait there to be resurrected and judged. But while we are there, we're not just sitting around drinking pina coladas and napping on big, fluffy clouds and playing our harps. Those who didn't have the opportunity to accept the gospel while on earth will be able to learn about and accept the gospel while in the spirit world. What? Where in the world did we get this idea from? It's in the Bible! "For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit"(1 Peter 4:6).
Jesus taught that "except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God"(John 3:5). We all need to be baptized. But some people live their whole lives without ever knowing that. The spirits of those who followed Christ and were baptized on earth teach those spirits who weren't baptized about the gospel of Jesus Christ in the spirit world. Those still living can then be baptized in behalf of those deceased persons in Holy Temples and the dead are given the choice to accept or reject the baptism. It doesn't change their religious affiliation or who they were, it just gives them an opportunity that might've been missed while they were on earth. Cool right? Again, the Bible teaches this principle in 1 Corinthians 15:29 when Paul was speaking to the people: "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead?" God is a just God and will make sure everyone has the chance to be baptized either in this life or the next. After this time of waiting is over and Christ has come to the earth again, we will all be resurrected. That is Jesus's free gift to everyone regardless of if they were good or bad. "The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame"(Alma 40:23). We will each have a glorified, perfected body and our spirit will never be separated from it again.
We will then be judged by God for our works and the desires of our hearts. Everything will be taken into account. Jesus Christ will stand by our side and be our advocate and plead our case. "For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared"(D&C 76:111).
And then do we go to heaven or hell? No again. If there was just a heaven and hell, where would be the cut off? I committed 300 sins so I go to hell but you only had 299 sins so you go to heaven? God is so much more loving and merciful than that. He has prepared places for us depending on how we lived here on earth.
There are three kingdoms of glory: the Telestial, the Terrestrial, and the Celestial. The Telestial has the glory of the stars, the Terrestrial the moon, and the Celestial the sun. The Bible teaches this as well. 1 Corinthians 15:40-41 states: "There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory." And how are the glories of these three kingdoms different? I'm glad you asked!
The Telestial Kingdom is the lowest kingdom of glory. Its glory is compared to the stars. Those who continued in their sins and did not repent will receive their reward in this kingdom. They cannot live with their families forever or live with God or progress. It is a beautiful place but it is essentially hell. It isn't hell like we think of where they are tortured in fire forever, but it is hell because they have eternity to know that because they followed Satan instead of God they can't be with their families or with God. "And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell"(2 Nephi 12:11).
The next kingdom is the Terrestrial Kingdom which is like the glory of the moon. People who do not accept the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ but live honorable lives will receive a place in this kingdom. "These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These are they who receive of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father"(D&C 76:75-77). They can't live with their families or God or progress any further, but they can still be visited by Christ and be happy.
The highest kingdom of glory is the Celestial Kingdom. This is where we want to go to. "They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given... Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall overcome all things"(D&C 76:51, 59, 60). This is where we can live with God and our families forever in eternal happiness. This is where we can progress and inherit all that the Father has and become like Him. This is the goal. This is why we are here. God wants us to follow Him so we can return as families and live together with Him forever.
After we die, we will go to the spirit world to wait for Christ's second coming and to prepare those who didn't hear the gospel. Then we will be resurrected, judged, and sent to one of the kingdoms of glory. God loves us and wants us to return to live with Him. He knows that not everyone will make it, but He has still provided other lower kingdoms of glory. No matter what we do, each of us will go to a kingdom of glory which is infinitely better than anywhere and anything on earth. We are all saved. But for us to reach the highest degree of glory, we need to follow Jesus Christ. We need to have faith, repent, be baptized by His proper priesthood authority, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and keep following Him until the end. And that is the purpose of life.
"And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."
(Romans 8:16-18)
Amen.
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