Question
Gramps,
If a person dies without knowledge of the Gospel and, as we are told, accepts it in the spirit world, and accepts the proxy work that is done for them, what resurrection will they come forth in, with what type of resurrected body? Will there be a “class” of spirits currently in the Spirit World, having accepted the Gospel there, that, having their work done during the Millennium, will receive a Celestial body during the Millennium?
Darryl
Answer
Darryl,
One of the beautiful doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that Heavenly Father provides every one of His children a fair opportunity to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because billions of people have lived and died without hearing the restored gospel, many members naturally wonder what happens to those individuals after death.
While not every detail has been revealed, LDS doctrine gives us several important principles that help answer these questions.
The starting point is understanding that the preaching of the gospel continues after death.
The Apostle Peter taught that Christ ministered to the spirits in the spirit world:
“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)
The Lord revealed much more about this work through President Joseph F. Smith in the vision now recorded as Doctrine and Covenants 138. He saw that righteous spirits continue preaching the gospel to those who died without knowledge of the truth.
“The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God.” (Doctrine and Covenants 138:58)
This doctrine teaches that those who never received a fair opportunity in mortality are not condemned because of circumstances beyond their control.
One of the clearest revelations on this subject came when Joseph Smith saw his deceased brother Alvin in the celestial kingdom, even though Alvin had died before baptism was available to him.
The Lord explained:
“All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God.” (Doctrine and Covenants 137:7)
This is a remarkable statement. It tells us that those who would have accepted the gospel in mortality are not disadvantaged because they happened to live in a different time or place.
President Dallin H. Oaks has reminded members that we should be cautious about claiming knowledge beyond what has been revealed concerning the spirit world. He taught:
“Beyond these basics, our canon of scripture contains very little about the spirit world that follows death and precedes the Final Judgment.” (Trust in the Lord)
That caution is important. We should distinguish between what has been revealed and what we reasonably infer from revealed doctrine.
So what kind of resurrection will faithful individuals who accept the gospel in the spirit world receive?
The scriptures teach that there are different degrees of glory and corresponding resurrections.
Paul wrote:
“There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars.” (1 Corinthians 15:41)
The Lord expanded on this doctrine in Doctrine and Covenants 76 and 88, explaining the celestial, terrestrial, and telestial kingdoms.
President Russell M. Nelson reaffirmed that the kind of resurrected body a person receives is connected to the laws he or she chooses to live:
“Your choices today will determine three things: where you will live throughout all eternity, the kind of body with which you will be resurrected, and those with whom you will live forever.” (Think Celestial!)
Later in the same address, President Nelson taught:
“Thus, if we unwisely choose to live telestial laws now, we are choosing to be resurrected with a telestial body.”
These statements reinforce the doctrine taught in Doctrine and Covenants 76 and 88 that there are different degrees of glory and corresponding resurrected bodies. The resurrected body a person receives corresponds to the kingdom of glory he or she is prepared to inherit.
It is also important to understand that accepting the gospel in the spirit world does not automatically place a person into either the celestial or terrestrial kingdom. The final inheritance depends on how that individual responds to the light and opportunities God gives.
Doctrine and Covenants 76 teaches that some inherit the terrestrial kingdom because they were not valiant in the testimony of Jesus:
“These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men.” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:75)
and
“These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus.” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:79)
At the same time, Doctrine and Covenants 137 teaches that those who would have accepted the gospel had they been given the opportunity in mortality can inherit the celestial kingdom.
“All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God.” (Doctrine and Covenants 137:7)
Therefore, LDS doctrine does not teach that accepting the gospel in the spirit world automatically results in a terrestrial inheritance. Rather, the determining factor is the individual’s faithfulness, desires, and willingness to accept and live according to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
If an individual accepts the gospel in the spirit world, receives and accepts proxy ordinances, and ultimately qualifies for celestial glory through the grace of Jesus Christ, that person would receive a celestial resurrected body.
The next question concerns timing. Will there be people currently in the spirit world who have accepted the gospel and who will receive celestial bodies during the Millennium? The scriptures indicate that the answer is very likely yes. The resurrection of the just begins with Christ’s coming and continues during the Millennium.
The Doctrine and Covenants teaches:
“They are Christ’s, the first fruits, they who shall descend with him first, and they who are on the earth and in their graves, who are first caught up to meet him.” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:98)
Church leaders have taught that righteous spirits who accept the gospel beyond the veil continue to look forward to the completion of ordinances performed on their behalf.
President Dallin H. Oaks explained:
“The spirit-world bondage that applies to righteous converted souls is their need to await—and perhaps even be allowed to prompt—the performance of their proxy ordinances on earth so they can be baptized and enjoy the blessings of the Holy Ghost.” (Trust in the Lord)
This statement is particularly significant because it confirms that righteous spirits have accepted the gospel and are awaiting the completion of ordinances performed in temples on earth. It harmonizes beautifully with Doctrine and Covenants 138, which teaches that missionary work continues among the dead and that those who repent may be redeemed through the ordinances of the house of God.
Doctrine and Covenants 128 also teaches:
“For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect.” (Doctrine and Covenants 128:18)
Putting these doctrines together, many Latter-day Saints understand that there are undoubtedly spirits today who have accepted the gospel in the spirit world and are awaiting the completion of ordinances on their behalf. As temple work accelerates during the Millennium, many of these individuals may participate in the ongoing First Resurrection and receive glorified celestial bodies.
However, exactly when specific individuals will be resurrected has not been revealed. President Oaks cautioned that while we know certain fundamental truths about the spirit world and the Resurrection, many details remain unrevealed.
What we do know is profoundly reassuring. Every child of God will receive a fair opportunity. Those who have never heard the gospel are not eternally disadvantaged. Through missionary work in the spirit world, temple ordinances performed by proxy, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the Resurrection, every person will have the opportunity to receive all that he or she is willing to accept.
According to revealed LDS doctrine, a person who dies without knowledge of the gospel, accepts it in the spirit world, receives and accepts proxy ordinances, and remains faithful to those covenants may inherit the celestial kingdom. If they inherit celestial glory, they will receive a celestial resurrected body. It is also consistent with revealed doctrine that many such individuals will come forth in the resurrection of the just during the Millennium as the great work of redemption for the dead continues on both sides of the veil.
Gramps
