The Blessed and Happy State

One of the important things Jesus did as He loved people was to teach them the commandments of His Father and to invite them to live by those divine laws. One day a woman taken in adultery was brought to Him. She had violated the law of chastity. How did he respond when some suggested to Him that she should be severely punished? John recorded, “But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (John 8:6-11). Jesus did two important things as I see it in this story. First, He showed love, respect, and kindness to this woman. He did not condemn her, belittle her, mock her, or throw stones at her. Second, He invited her to repent and to keep the law of chastity. He did not justify the sin or relax the commandment, but He invited her to keep it: “Go, and sin no more.” And ultimately those are the two principles that I believe should guide us in how we approach moral issues. First, we love all those around us and treat them with respect and kindness no matter what they believe or do. We should never throw figurative stones at others. Second, we hold fast to the commandments of God like the Savior did and stay firm in our conviction that the law of chastity is from God. We affirm to others that keeping the commandments will ultimately bring the most happiness just as King Benjamin declared, “And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it” (Mosiah 2:41). 

        The Church handbook says, "As a doctrinal principle, based on the scriptures, the Church affirms that marriage between a man and a woman is essential to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. The Church also affirms that God’s law defines marriage as the legal and lawful union between a man and a woman. Only a man and a woman who are legally and lawfully wedded as husband and wife should have sexual relations. Any other sexual relations, including those between persons of the same sex, are sinful and undermine the divinely created institution of the family.” God wants us to be happy eternally in our families, and keeping the law of chastity is essential to obtaining that goal. No blessing in eternity will be kept back from those who choose to make and keep their covenants with the Lord, even if that comes at great sacrifice in this life. Many may not be able to have the family life they desire in this life, but if we hold fast to our covenants we can still obtain "all that [the] Father hath" just as He promised (Doctrine and Covenants 84:38).