Purpose
To strengthen our resolve to hold fast to righteous standards during times of increasing wickedness.
Scriptures
Additional Reading
Lesson Resources
- Teacher's Manual
- Class Member Study Guide
- Meridian Magazine
- LDS Living
- Brother Beardall's Outline
- James E Neumann Institute
- BYU Study Series
6 comments:
I liked this line in the LDS Living article, "It is important to note here that although Abraham refused to accept the tiniest endowment from the king of wickedness, he was willing to give to the king of righteousness." Not only do we not want to TAKE from anything evil, we should want to GIVE to God. It really shows which mindset is so important... and of course, we give to God when we give to others - not only in tithes and offerings, but in service to others.
From the Institute Manual:
"The account of Lot’s wife being turned into a pillar of salt has puzzled many commentators. Was this event a literal thing, or was it figurative? There are two indications in the scriptures that the phrase “looked back” was an idiomatic way of saying “she turned back” or “returned to Sodom.” When warning the disciples of the destruction which was going to come upon Jerusalem, the Savior warned them to flee without delay, not even going into the house to get their possessions. Jesus said, “And he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back. Remember Lot’s wife” (Luke 17:31–32; emphasis added). He then admonished them that he who seeks to save his life will lose it, and he who loses his life will find it. Elder Bruce R. McConkie paraphrased those verses in these words:
“Look not back to Sodom and the wealth and luxury you are leaving. Stay not in the burning house, in the hope of salvaging your treasures, lest the flame destroy you; but flee, flee to the mountains.
“Seek temporal things and lose eternal life; sacrifice the things of this life and gain eternal life.” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 1:645.)
The implication is that Lot’s wife started back to Sodom, perhaps to save some possessions, and was caught in the destruction."
2nd part:
"In the Doctrine and Covenants is a scripture that uses the same terminology as Genesis 19:26. After warning the Saints to flee spiritual Babylon, which is wickedness, the Lord says, “He that goeth, let him not look back lest sudden destruction shall come upon him” (D&C 133:15; emphasis added). Again, the implication is that of a return to wickedness.
Most scholars agree that the most probable site of Sodom is now covered by the southern part of the Dead Sea, a body of water with a high salt content. If Lot’s wife returned to Sodom, she would have been caught in the destruction. Her becoming a pillar of salt could be a figurative way of expressing this outcome.
But whatever it was that happened to Lot’s wife, it is clear that she perished."
From Zion in the Midst of Babylon (a talk that I LOVE). I think it definitely relates to this lesson.
"My involvement with the building of the Manhattan temple gave me the opportunity to be in the temple quite often prior to the dedication. It was wonderful to sit in the celestial room and be there in perfect silence, without a single sound to be heard coming from the busy New York streets outside. How was it possible that the temple could be so reverently silent when the hustle and bustle of the metropolis was just a few yards away?
The answer was in the construction of the temple. The temple was built within the walls of an existing building, and the inner walls of the temple were connected to the outer walls at only a very few junction points. That is how the temple (Zion) limited the effects of Babylon, or the world outside.
There may be a lesson here for us. We can create the real Zion among us by limiting the extent to which Babylon will influence our lives."
"Peter wrote about how the conversational filthiness of Sodom and Gomorrah actually vexed Lot. (2 Pet. 2:7–8.) Surely you, as today’s “children of light,” know what it is like to be so vexed, whether in conversation, music, film, or print. I even wonder if such an oppressive environment will not become another reason for the Saints of latter-days to pray, as we will, unceasingly, for the Lord to come!" - “Cleanse Us from All Unrighteousness” (BY ELDER NEAL A. MAXWELL)
"My theme comes in the next verse. Surely, with the Lord’s counsel—“look not behind thee”—ringing clearly in her ears, Lot’s wife, the record says, “looked back,” and she was turned into a pillar of salt (see verse 26).
Just what did Lot’s wife do that was so wrong? As a student of history, I have thought about that and offer a partial answer. Apparently, what was wrong with Lot’s wife was that she wasn’t just looking back; in her heart she wanted to go back. It would appear that even before she was past the city limits, she was already missing what Sodom and Gomorrah had offered her. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles once said, such people know they should have their primary residence in Zion, but they still hope to keep a summer cottage in Babylon. 1
It is possible that Lot’s wife looked back with resentment toward the Lord for what He was asking her to leave behind. We certainly know that Laman and Lemuel were resentful when Lehi and his family were commanded to leave Jerusalem. So it isn’t just that she looked back; she looked back longingly. In short, her attachment to the past outweighed her confidence in the future. That, apparently, was at least part of her sin." - The Best Is Yet to Be (BY ELDER JEFFREY R. HOLLAND)
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