Swinging

Something that I have been seeing... 

As a missionary we learned that in the garden of Eden there were two types of death brought into the world... 

Physical Death... 

Spiritual Death...

In fact... it's a danger because Helaman says that we are considered dead right this minute... 

    Helaman 14:16 

    16 Yea, behold, this death bringeth to pass the resurrection, and redeemeth all mankind from the first death—that spiritual death; for all mankind, by the fall of Adam being cut off from the presence of the Lord, are considered as dead, both as to things temporal and to things spiritual.

    So Father considers us dead where we stand.... and he is trying to save us.  

    

The image of a swing... or a pendulum that swings is a powerful one.  It has some interesting qualities. 

1. It touches opposites... If it goes to the left... then it WILL go to the right. 

2. It usually goes to the same height on the opposite side... If it goes high on one side... it will go high on the other. 

3. It repeats... over and over... cycles over and over... 

The scripture is the First shall be last... and the Last shall be first. 

over and over... 

Same-ness... 

opposites.... 

In the temple, we hear Father say something to the effect of "We will send them down to test them and to try them... to see if they will learn... good from evil..."  That's not it exactly... but it's close. The elements are there... 

See if they will learn... 

See if they will know good from evil. 

Test them... try them... 

But look at the "Learn" part.  

It struck me this week... that could easily be the name of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.... To partake is to learn.... 

So not only did Adam and Eve eat the fruit... but we all have... we all learn.  

But the temple also talks about kings and priests.... Moses taught the same thing.... 

When we hear in Exodus 19:5-6

 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

Kings rule over all things physical.... Lands, Rights, Disputes, Laws.... 

Priests rule over all things spiritual... Repentance.... Teaching.... Holiness.... 

So the ToKGE (Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil) caused us to die 

Physically

Spiritually

The temple teaches us how to look to the savior to become a 

King (ruler over the physical)

Priest (ruler over the spiritual)

The pendulum is trying to fix all that was broken in the garden... PLUS we get the bonus of KNOWLEDGE.  

Well.  That was my stuff for the week...