Why, then, does The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints build and maintain temples? In answer let the following pertinent facts be carefully considered.
NECESSITY OF OBEDIENCE TO THE LAWS AND ORDINANCES OF THE GOSPEL
As part of its declaration of faith, the Church proclaims:
"We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel."[[1]]
While professing belief in the possibility of a universal salvation, the Church affirms that salvation is assured only on condition of individual compliance with the requirements established by the Redeemer, without whose atoning sacrifice none could be saved. The atonement wrought by the Christ on Calvary was a vicarious offering, in the beneficent results of which all mankind are made partakers. As to redemption from the thrall of mortality incident to the transgression in Eden, the sacrificial death of Christ met in full the exactions incident to the broken law; and none but Adam shall be held accountable for Adam's disobedience, nor for any results thereof. In the just judgment to which every mortal shall come, all conditions of inherited weakness, temptation due to environment, the capacity to choose and to act, the measure of knowledge to which the subject has attained, the meed of truth he has accepted or rejected, the opportunities he has used aright or wrongly spurned, the fidelity with which he walked in the light or the depravity through which he wandered in the forbidden paths of darkness,—these and every other fact and circumstance entering into the individual life will be duly weighed and considered. At the bar of God the distinguishing feature of Divine mercy will be, as in the affairs of mortal life it now is, not an arbitrary forgiveness of sin nor unearned annulment of the debts of guilt, but the providing of a way whereby the sinner may be enabled to meet the requirements of the Gospel, and so in due course pass from the prison house of sin to the glorious freedom of a righteous life.
There is but one price set on forgiveness for individual transgression, and this is alike to all,—to poor and rich, to bond and free, to illiterate and learned; it knows no fluctuations, it changes not with time; it was the same yesterday as today it is, and even so shall be forever,—and that price, at which may be bought the pearl beyond all price, is obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
Hear this further declaration of faith taught by the restored Church:
"We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are:—(1) Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; (2) Repentance; (3) Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; (4) Laying-on of hands for the Gift of the Holy Ghost."[[2]]
Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the fundamental principle of the Gospel, the first letter in the alphabet of salvation with which are spelled the words of life eternal. Yet who can have faith in aught of which he knows nothing? Knowledge is essential to faith, and faith impels its possessor to seek further knowledge, and to make of that knowledge, wisdom, which is but knowledge applied and put to use. To preach Christ and Him crucified[[3]] is the one and only way by which faith in Him may be taught through the medium of either precept or example. While knowledge and faith are thus closely associated, the two are not identical, nor is the one an assured outgrowth of the other. A man may have learned the truth, and yet may ignore it. His knowledge, far from developing within his soul the faith that leads to right action, may but add to his condemnation, for he sins without even the mitigation of ignorance. Evil spirits have testified of their knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, nevertheless they remain the fallen followers of Satan.[[4]] As living faith develops within the soul of man it leads its possessor to seek a means whereby he may rise from the thraldom of sin; and the very thought of such emancipation inspires a loathing for the evil contamination of the past. The natural fruitage of that glorious growth is repentance.
Repentance, as a requirement made of all men, constitutes the second principle of the Gospel of Christ. It comprises a sincere sorrow for the sins of the past, and a resolute turning away therefrom with the solemn determination to endeavor by Divine assistance to return thereto no more. Repentance comes as a gift from God to him who has treasured and nurtured the earlier gift of faith. It is not to be had for the careless asking; it may not be found upon the highway; it is not of earth, but a treasure of heaven, and is given with care, yet with boundless liberality unto those who have brought forth works that warrant its bestowal. That is to say, all who prepare themselves for repentance will, by the humbling and softening influence of the Holy Spirit, be brought to the actual possession of this great gift. When Peter was charged by his fellow-worshippers with a breach of law in that he had associated with Gentiles, he told his hearers of the Divine manifestations he had so recently received; they believed and declared "Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life." Paul also, in writing to the Romans, teaches that repentance comes through the goodness of God.[[5]]