An Offering in Righteousness

In the most recent general conference, Bishop Gérald Caussé spoke about compensating blessings that the Lord gives to the faithful. He said, “When circumstances beyond our control prevent us from fulfilling the righteous desires of our hearts, the Lord will compensate in ways that allow us to receive His promised blessings.” He also taught, “Receiving these compensating blessings comes with certain conditions. The Lord asks us to do ‘all we can’ and to ‘offer [our] whole souls as an offering unto him.’ This requires a deep desire, a sincere and faithful heart, and our utmost diligence in keeping His commandments and aligning our will with His. When our earnest efforts fall short of our aspirations due to circumstances beyond our control, the Lord still accepts the desires of our hearts as a worthy offering.” We need to make our own offering to the Lord, even if it seems inadequate or incomplete. Bishop Caussé referred to these words of the Lord who explained how He accepts our offerings even when they fall short: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, that when I give a commandment to any of the sons of men to do a work unto my name, and those sons of men go with all their might and with all they have to perform that work, and cease not their diligence, and their enemies come upon them and hinder them from performing that work, behold, it behooveth me to require that work no more at the hands of those sons of men, but to accept of their offerings” (Doctrine and Covenants 124:49). In the Old Testament times, the offerings that the people of the Lord gave were physical sacrifices of animals and food—burnt offerings, peace offerings, trespass offerings, sin offerings—that were given up for the Lord. Now in our dispensation He asks for a different offering. He wants us to give our hearts to His work, and when we do, He promises compensatory blessings to help us even when we come up short.

                One of the most famous offerings spoken of in the scriptures is found in this verse in Malachi about the time when the Savior shall come again: “And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness” (Malachi 3:3). John the Baptist spoke of this when he conferred the Aaronic Priesthood upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery: “This shall never be taken again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness” (Doctrine and Covenants 13:1). Many years later the Prophet Joseph referred to this again in a letter to the Saints about their baptisms for the dead: “For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap; and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Let us, therefore, as a church and a people, and as Latter-day Saints, offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness; and let us present in his holy temple, when it is finished, a book containing the records of our dead, which shall be worthy of all acceptation” (Doctrine and Covenants 128:24). This “book” that we present to the Lord will be a record of our collective family history and the ordinances of the temple that we are doing for them—essentially the whole of FamilyTree being added to by tens of thousands of people every day. I think we can interpret then the “offering” as this book itself. Perhaps, also, we might understand this offering as our own efforts at righteousness. In other words, this “offering in righteousness” might be an “offering of righteousness” that enables us to be in the temple and to create that book. In another revelation the Lord said, “Thou shalt offer a sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in righteousness, even that of a broken heart and a contrite spirit” (Doctrine and Covenants 59:8). To offer an offering in righteousness is to have a broken heart and a contrite spirit, which, as another verse suggests, is connected with having “truly repented of all [our] sins” (Doctrine and Covenants 20:37). Perhaps the greatest offering we can make to the Lord is to give up our sins and live in righteousness to the best we are able. It is the one that the father of King Lamoni was willing to offer to the Lord: “I will give away all my sins to know thee” (Alma 22:18).  

                Bishop Caussé summarized his message with these words: “I testify that while many circumstances in life may be beyond our control, none of us is beyond the reach of the Lord’s infinite blessings. Through His atoning sacrifice, the Savior will compensate for every inability and injustice if we offer our whole souls to Him.” As He promised to Oliver Granger, it doesn’t matter if we fall short; what matters is that we give our all to the Lord: “Therefore, let him contend earnestly for the redemption of the First Presidency of my Church, saith the Lord; and when he falls he shall rise again, for his sacrifice shall be more sacred unto me than his increase, saith the Lord” (Doctrine and Covenants 117:13). As we “contend earnestly” to do what the Lord has asked and become what He wants us to become, we will be accepted of Him and have His compensatory blessings.