Who is Elder James R Rasband?

Elder James R. Rasband was sustained as a General Authority Seventy on April 6, 2019. He is currently an Assistant Executive Director in the Temple Department.

Elder Rasband began his career as an attorney with Perkins Coie in Seattle, Washington. In 1995 he joined the faculty of the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University. He later served as dean of the J. Reuben Clark Law School from 2009 to 2016 and then as academic vice president of Brigham Young University.

A Prophet’s Invitation

Last April, soon after the joyful news that the Church had acquired the Kirtland Temple, President Russell M. Nelson invited us to study the dedicatory prayer of the Kirtland Temple, recorded in section 109 of the Doctrine and Covenants. The dedicatory prayer, said President Nelson, “is a tutorial about how the temple spiritually empowers you and me to meet the challenges of life in these last days.”

How does the temple spiritually empower us to meet the challenges of the last days?

I am sure your study of section 109 yielded insights that blessed you. This evening, I share a couple of things I learned as I followed our prophet’s invitation. The peace-giving path down which my study led reminded me that the Lord is merciful and that our Heavenly Father’s plan of salvation is truly a plan of mercy.

Why do you feel that the plan of salvation can be appropriately called a plan of mercy?

For 10 years I served as a magistrate. One day a defendant asked through his solicitor that we deal with his case as speedily as possible as while he was waiting for his case to be called, his wife had given birth in the court building corridor. He, cheekily and pointedly, suggested that they intended to name their baby girl Mercy.  Unfortunately as a consequence of the seriousness of the offences and the defendant’s criminal record we had no choice but to send him to prison. I might have suggested that if his wife had given birth to twins they could have called them Mercy and Justice.

Mercy and Justice are twinned eternal principles. Justice requires that, because he is Holy and perfect no unclean thing be permitted to dwell with God. None of us are perfect, we all commit sin and each time we commit sin that is a violation of eternal law and there are consequences. Those consequences include the fact that we become unclean and unable to dwell with God.

We do not have the power to satisfy the demands of justice for a broken eternal law ourselves. However, as well as being a just God, our God is also a merciful God. He prepared what Alma described in Alma 42:15 as a plan of mercy that would appease the demands of Justice, through the atonement of Jesus Christ. Because of this selfless act, the Father can mercifully withhold punishment from us and welcome us into His presence.

Newly Called Missionaries Serving in the Temple

As you may be aware, “newly called missionaries are encouraged to receive the temple endowment as soon as possible and to attend the temple as often as circumstances allow.” Once endowed, they also “may serve as temple … workers before they begin missionary service.”

Time in the temple before entering the missionary training center (MTC) can be a wonderful blessing for new missionaries as they learn more about temple covenants before sharing the blessings of those covenants with the world.

How could newly called missionaries be blessed by serving in the temple before beginning their missionary service? 

But in studying section 109, I learned that in the temple, God empowers new missionaries—indeed, all of us—in an additional, sacred way. 

In the footnotes to his talk, Elder Rasband writes:

‘As with all temple blessings, God’s bestowal of these blessings is dependent upon our keeping the covenants we make in the temple. See Russell M. Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 96: “Each person who makes covenants … in temples—and keeps them—has increased access to the power of Jesus Christ.”

As another example, consider the First Presidency’s statement on wearing the temple garment: “As you keep your covenants, including the sacred privilege to wear the garment as instructed in the initiatory ordinances, you will have greater access to the Savior’s mercy, protection, strength, and power” (General Handbook, 26.3.3.2; emphasis added).’

Have you felt greater access to the power of Jesus Christ as you have kept temple covenants?

In the dedicatory prayer, given by revelation, the Prophet Joseph Smith prayed that “when thy servants shall go out from thy house … to bear testimony of thy name,” the “hearts” of “all people” would “be softened”—both the “great ones of the earth” and “all the poor, the needy, and [the] afflicted.” He prayed that “their prejudices may give way before the truth, and thy people may obtain favor in the sight of all; that all the ends of the earth may know that we, thy servants, have heard thy voice, and that thou hast sent us.”

When have you observed the power of testimony to soften someone’s heart?

This is a beautiful promise for a newly called missionary—to have prejudices “give way before the truth,” to “obtain favor in the sight of all,” and to have the world know they are sent by the Lord. Each of us surely needs these same blessings. What a blessing it would be to have hearts softened as we interact with neighbors and coworkers. The dedicatory prayer does not explain exactly how our time in the temple will soften others’ hearts, but I am convinced it is bound up with how time in the house of the Lord softens our own hearts by centering us on Jesus Christ and His mercy.

From the footnotes to Elder Rasband’s talk:

‘See Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again,” Liahona, Nov. 2024, 121–22: “Here is my promise to you: Every sincere seeker of Jesus Christ will find Him in the temple. You will feel His mercy.”’

The Lord Answers Joseph Smith’s Plea for Mercy

As I studied the Kirtland dedicatory prayer, I was also struck that Joseph again and again pleaded for mercy—for the members of the Church, for the enemies of the Church, for the leaders of the country, for the nations of the earth. And, very personally, he pleaded with the Lord to remember him and to have mercy upon his beloved Emma and their children.

From the footnotes:

‘The Oxford English Dictionary defines mercy as “clemency and compassion shown to a person who is in a position of powerlessness” (“mercy,” oed.com). Mercy, like grace, is an expression of God’s love and kindness—His hesed. Whereas mercy is focused on withholding a punishment we deserve, grace typically refers to God giving us blessings we do not deserve and without regard to merit.’

Here are some examples of mercy:

• Our Heavenly Father shows mercy when He forgives us of our sins and helps us return to dwell in His presence.
• We are recipients of divine mercy when Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers
• we receive mercies when we receive guidance from the Holy Ghost
•  we are shown mercy when we are healed from sickness through priesthood power.
• Although D&C 130 tells us that all blessings come as results of our obedience, we could never receive them through our efforts alone. They are merciful gifts from a loving and compassionate Father.

How must Joseph have felt when, one week later, on Easter Day, April 3, 1836, in the Kirtland Temple, the Savior appeared to him and Oliver Cowdery and, as recorded in section 110 of the Doctrine and Covenants, said, “I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here; and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house.” This promise of mercy must have had special meaning to Joseph. And as President Nelson taught last April, this promise also “applies to every dedicated temple today.”

Finding Mercy in the House of the Lord

There are so many ways in which we each can find mercy in the house of the Lord. This has been true since the Lord first commanded Israel to build a tabernacle and to place at its center the “mercy seat.” In the temple, we find mercy in the covenants we make. Those covenants, in addition to the baptismal covenant, bind us to the Father and the Son and give us increased access to what President Nelson has taught is “a special kind of love and mercy … called hesed” in Hebrew.

From the footnotes:

‘Russell M. Nelson, “The Everlasting Covenant,” Liahona, Oct. 2022, 5. As President Nelson points out, hesed has no precise English equivalent, but its most common translation in the Old Testament is mercy. Of the 248 times the word hesed appears in the King James Version of the Old Testament, mercy is used 149 times, kindness 40 times, and lovingkindness 30 times (see Blue Letter Bible, blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h2617/kjv/wlc/0-1/).’

How do you find mercy in the House of the Lord?

We find mercy in the opportunity to be sealed to our families for eternity. In the temple, we also come to understand with greater clarity that the Creation, the Fall, the Savior’s atoning sacrifice, and our ability to enter again into our Heavenly Father’s presence—indeed, every part of the plan of salvation—are manifestations of mercy. 

From the footnotes:

‘President Jeffrey R. Holland once said, “Surely the thing God enjoys most about being God is the thrill of being merciful, especially to those who don’t expect it and often feel they don’t deserve it” (“The Laborers in the Vineyard,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2012, 33).’

It might be said that the plan of salvation is a plan of happiness precisely because it is a “plan of mercy.”

Elder Bednar defined the tender mercies of the Lord as “the very personal and individualized blessings, strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindnesses, consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because of and through the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Further, he taught that “the tender mercies of the Lord are real and that they do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence. Often, the Lord’s timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them.”

Seeking Forgiveness Opens the Door to the Holy Ghost

I am grateful for the beautiful promise in section 110 that the Lord will manifest Himself in mercy in His temples. I am also grateful for what it reveals about how the Lord will manifest Himself in mercy whenever we, like Joseph, plead for mercy.

Joseph Smith’s plea for mercy in section 109 was not the first time his pleas for mercy prompted revelation. In the Sacred Grove, young Joseph prayed not just to know which Church was true, but he also said that he “cried unto the Lord for mercy, for there was none else to whom I could go [to] obtain mercy.” Somehow his recognition that he needed mercy that only the Lord could provide helped open the windows of heaven. Three years later the angel Moroni appeared, following what Joseph said was his “prayer and supplication to Almighty God for forgiveness of all my sins and follies.”

What can we learn from Joseph’s experience?

This pattern of revelation following a plea for mercy is a familiar one in the scriptures. Enos heard the voice of the Lord only after praying for forgiveness. King Lamoni’s father’s conversion begins with his prayer, “I will give away all my sins to know thee.” We may not be blessed with these same dramatic experiences, but for those who sometimes struggle to feel answers to prayer, seeking the Lord’s mercy is one of the most powerful ways to feel the witness of the Holy Ghost.

Pondering God’s Mercy Opens the Door to a Testimony of the Book of Mormon

A similar principle is beautifully taught in Moroni 10:3–5. We often shorthand these verses to teach that through sincere prayer, we can learn whether the Book of Mormon is true. But this shorthand can neglect the important role of mercy. Listen to how Moroni begins his exhortation: “I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, … that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.”

Moroni urges us not only to read these things—the records he was about to seal up—but also to ponder in our hearts what the Book of Mormon reveals about “how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men.” It is pondering upon the Lord’s mercy that prepares us to “ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true.”

God has extraordinary love and mercy for each of us. He longs to be with us and is joyful when we are close to him.

As we ponder on the Book of Mormon, we might ask: Is it really true, as Alma taught, that God’s plan of mercy assures that every person who ever lived on this earth will be resurrected and that they will “be restored to their … perfect frame”? Is Amulek right—can the Savior’s mercy satisfy all the bitterly real demands of justice that we would otherwise be obligated to pay and instead “[encircle us] in the arms of safety”?

How would you answer this question?

From the footnotes:

‘As we consider how merciful the Lord has been, we may be tempted to disconnect mercy from justice—to think that our Heavenly Father’s loving mercy alone can overcome justice. But as Alma taught, “The plan of mercy could not be brought about except an atonement should be made; therefore God himself atoneth for the sins of the world, to bring about the plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice, that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also” (Alma 42:15; emphasis added).

All the Savior’s merciful love for us could not save us. Rather, it was His suffering the very real and painful demands of justice that saves us. This does not, of course, diminish the importance of His love. Surely it was His love for us—and His desire to do the will of the Father, who also loves us—that caused Him to be willing to suffer (see John 3:16; Doctrine and Covenants 34:3). But love alone could not work.

Sometimes we may focus so much on His love for us just the way we are that we lose sight of the fact that the way we are—as natural men and women whose behavior inevitably falls short of living the commandments—demands that justice be satisfied. If we misunderstand and view His love as doing away with the demands of justice, we diminish the gift of His atoning sacrifice and the suffering He did to pay the terrible price of justice. It would be discouragingly ironic if His love for us were understood to make unnecessary His atoning sacrifice. How much better it is to look squarely at the full demands of justice and to then be grateful that He loved us enough to bear those very real demands on our behalf.’

Is it true, as Alma testified, that Christ suffered not only for our sins but for our “pains and afflictions” so that He could “know … how to succor his people according to their infirmities”? Is the Lord really so merciful, as King Benjamin taught, that as a free gift, He atoned “for the sins of those … who have died not knowing the will of God concerning them, or who have ignorantly sinned”?

How do you feel about these truths restored through the Book of Mormon?

Is it true, as Lehi said, that “Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy”? And is it really true, as Abinadi testified, quoting Isaiah, that Jesus Christ was “wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed”?

In sum, is the Father’s plan as taught in the Book of Mormon really this merciful? I testify that it is and that the peace-giving and hopeful teachings of mercy in the Book of Mormon are true.

Still, I imagine that some may be struggling, despite your faithful reading and prayers, to realize Moroni’s promise that Heavenly Father “will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.” I know this struggle because I felt it, many years ago, when my own first couple of reads of the Book of Mormon did not yield an immediate and clear answer to my prayers.

If you are struggling, may I invite you to follow Moroni’s counsel to ponder on the many ways the Book of Mormon teaches “how merciful the Lord hath been [to] the children of men”? Based on my experience, I hope that when you do, the peace of the Holy Ghost can enter your heart and you can know, believe, and feel that the Book of Mormon and the plan of mercy it teaches are true.

I express my gratitude for the Father’s great plan of mercy and for the Savior’s willingness to carry it out. I know that He will manifest Himself in mercy in His holy temple and in every part of our life if we will seek Him. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

How has God manifested His mercy to you?

What parts of Elder Rasband’s message most impressed you?

NB: Passages in italics are direct quotes from Elder Rasband’s talk.

You can watch Elder Rasband’s talk here.