How to Catch a Monkey

Monkeys can be hard to catch. They are small, fast and able to jump from tree to tree. A person might never expect to catch a monkey if not for a well-known trick that works with incredible consistency.

To catch a monkey, all one needs to do is put a hole in a coconut or container that is large enough for a monkey's hand but too small for its fist. Baited with a piece of fruit or another desirable object, the monkey will reach in to grab the bait but will not be able to remove their fist from the trap. Unwilling to let go of the prize, the monkey can then be easily caught or even killed.

In March 1831, Leman Copley was caught in a metaphorical monkey trap. Although he had been baptized some time before, he still held to some of the teachings of his prior congregation among the Shakers. "Some of the beliefs of the Shakers were that Christ's second coming had already occurred and he had appeared in the form of a woman, Ann Lee; baptism by water was not considered essential; the eating of pork was specifically forbidden, and many did not eat meat; and a celibate life was considered higher than marriage" (D&C 49 section heading).

Responding to Joseph Smith's inquiry about these subjects, the Lord explained that the Shakers, "desire to know the truth in part, but not all" and that they "are not right before me and must needs repent" (D&C 49:2). The Lord then addressed the teachings in question, reasserting the principles of the gospel and directing Leman Copley and others to teach these principles to the Shakers.

The Shakers are not the only ones with their hearts and hands in a monkey trap. Too often we can find ourselves holding on too long to a political opinion, a bad habit, worldly philosophies or praise, or a grudge against someone else. When we refuse to let go of what might seem like a prize, we risk being caught and spiritually destroyed.

To be right before the Lord, we must desire to know all the truth He has revealed and strive to live by what we know. If we do this, the Lord promises he will "go before you and be your rearward; and I will be in your midst, and you shall not be confounded". With faithful repentance and honest seeking for truth, we can avoid the monkey traps of life.

Receiving the Blessings We Desire Most

For about a week each February, a waterfall in Yosemite National Park turns into a cascade of fire. It's a rare sight that only happens when it's wet enough, warm enough and clear enough to have winter waterfalls and a view of the setting sun. The Yosemite Firefall is, of course, an optical illusion, but people travel from all over the world to see the wonder of Horsetail Fall appearing like a pillar of fire.

We all have things we want to see with our own eyes. For some of us it may be natural wonders; for others, it might be an incredible feat or a rare collectors item or a prayed-for event.

For Martin Harris in March of 1829, the thing he wanted to see most was the gold plates Joseph Smith was translating into what we now call The Book of Mormon. He had invested considerable time and money in the translation and his wife was increasingly upset with his involvement. Lucy Harris thought her husband had been deceived and even filed a legal complaint against Joseph Smith and gathered a number of people willing to testify that he had lied about the plates. She told Martin he would join Joseph in jail if he did not also testify of Joseph Smith's deception and fraud.

Martin believed the plates were real, but he decided to travel from his home in upstate New York to Harmony, Pennsylvania, to ask Joseph if he could see the plates. Perhaps he thought that seeing the plates would justify his involvement with the work of translation and avoid further conflict with Lucy.

When Martin arrived in Pennsylvania, Joseph took Martin's question to the Lord and received a revelation now canonized as Doctrine and Covenants Section 5. In this revelation, the Lord gives two answers to Martin's question. First, he directs Joseph:

And now, behold, this shall you say unto him...: I, the Lord, am God, and have given these things [the plates] unto you, my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and have commanded you that you should stand as a witness of these things; And I have caused you that you should enter into a covenant with me, that you should not show them except to those persons to whom I commanded you; and you have no power over them except I grant it unto you (v. 2-3).

Martin was not allowed to see the plates at that time. Instead, the Lord affirmed that it was Joseph Smith's role to witness the plates were real. Martin would be required to walk by faith a little longer, even and perhaps especially in face of opposition to his belief.

More than 120 years later, President Joseph Fielding Smith shared that he had often observed similar inquiries:

Frequently when [people] … hear the story of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, they ask if the plates are in some museum where they may be seen. Some of them with some scientific training, [suggest] that if the scholars could see and examine the plates and learn to read them, they would then bear witness to the truth of the Book of Mormon and the veracity of Joseph Smith, and the whole world would then be converted (Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 1:40).

The Lord's ways are not our ways however, and on this occasion there is more to the explanation. The Lord continued the revelation:

If they will not believe my words, they would not believe you, my servant Joseph, if it were possible that you should show them all these things which I have committed unto you... I have reserved those things which I have entrusted unto you, my servant Joseph, for a wise purpose in me, and it shall be made known unto future generations; But this generation shall have my word through you (v. 7, 9-10).

Had Martin Harris, or anyone else, seen the plates; or if we could see the plates in a museum somewhere; he or she or we still may not believe. Certainly those inclined not to believe could dispute the translation and origins even with the plates right before their eyes. So the Lord reserved the plates to emphasize Joseph Smith's unique calling and for "a wise purpose" he didn't immediately elaborate.

Rather than relying on our senses alone, the Lord teaches that it is crucial for each of us, as it was important for Martin Harris, to have a testimony of his gospel and the great work of restoration. A testimony is a divine witness or evidence that is impressed upon our hearts and minds. Its effects are often deeper and more profound than what we learn from our senses.

When we come to really believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet called of God to translate the Book of Mormon and restore the priesthood and organization of Christ's church upon the earth, we can know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church upon the earth today. This testimony guides us to the covenant blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ, ordinances that can be performed by proper authority and ultimately, if we are faithful, salvation from sin and death through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and eternal life in the celestial kingdom of God.

Of course, none of us need take the word of Joseph Smith alone. We have the testimony of the Book of Mormon. We can read it, ponder the words it teaches and ask God if they are true. He has promised that if we "ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost" (Moroni 10:4). Millions of people have had this experience and can add their testimonies to the witness of Joseph Smith.

Among the millions, three men in addition to Joseph Smith were called to be witnesses of the plates themselves. The Lord taught Joseph Smith on that day in March 1829:

And in addition to [the testimony of Joseph Smith], the testimony of three of my servants, whom I shall call and ordain, unto whom I will show these things, and they shall go forth with my words that are given through you. Yea, they shall know of a surety that these things are true, for from heaven will I declare it unto them. I will give them power that they may behold and view these things as they are; And to none else will I grant this power, to receive this same testimony among this generation.... And the testimony of three witnesses will I send forth of my word (v. 11-15).

Each copy of the Book of Mormon begins with a title page, introduction and a copy of the written testimony of Three Witnesses, which stands as another evidence of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. The Lord continued:

And behold, whosoever believeth on my words, them will I visit with the manifestation of my Spirit; and they shall be born of me, even of water and of the Spirit... And their testimony shall also go forth unto the condemnation of this generation if they harden their hearts against them (v. 16, 18).

President Ezra Taft Benson taught that "we each need to get our own testimony of the Book of Mormon through the Holy Ghost. Then our testimony, coupled with the Book of Mormon, should be shared with others so that they, too, can know through the Holy Ghost of its truthfulness" (“The Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants,” Ensign, May 1987, 84).

After admonishing Joseph Smith to "walk more uprightly" and "yield to the persuasions of men no more", the Lord provides the second answer to Martin Harris' question:

And now, again, I speak unto you, my servant Joseph, concerning the man that desires the witness-- Behold, I say unto him, he exalts himself and does not humble himself sufficiently before me; but if he will bow down before me, and humble himself in mighty prayer and faith, in the sincerity of his heart, then will I grant unto him a view of the things which he desires to see (v. 23-24).

Through a multi-step process, the Lord offered Martin Harris the opportunity to become one of the Three Witnesses. As with the first answer, the Lord provided more explanation of this promise, including an admonition to testify to the world of what he saw and a warning that failure to be sufficiently humble and obedient would result in not seeing the plates and Martin's condemnation and destruction.

Often the Lord responds to us the way he responded here to Martin Harris. He doesn't usually give us what we want outright, but he provides a way for us to receive the blessings we desire. We don't usually have to travel the world to find them, but the Lord does require us to pursue our desires with humble and sincere prayers and acts of faith. Along the way, he provides guidance and commandments that protect us from the obstacles, including sometimes those we love, who would take us off the path and lead us another way toward worldly approval and the destruction of our souls.

Three months after the Lord's responses to Martin's question, Martin Harris was one of three men who saw the plates and testified to the world of their reality. Likewise, if we walk the path the Lord lays out for us, he will send the proverbial rain and part the clouds so we can receive the blessings we desire.

The Consecration of Job

The Old Testament tells of "a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil" (Job 1:1). Job was a wealthy man with a large family, many friends, a large property and servants who cared for his crops and animals. Through a series of disasters and misfortunes, Job lost all his wealth and property, his servants and family were killed, he contracted agonizing diseases and his friends all turned against him. 

Alone in the world, and having lost everything, Job was overburdened by grief for months. "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said, 'Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.' In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job 1:20-22).

Like Job, the followers of Christ are asked to give all they have and are in the service of the Lord. When we are baptized, we witness that we will always remember our Savior and are willing to both keep all of God's commandments and take the name of Christ upon ourselves (D&C 20:77, 79). Alma taught what this looks like when he said:

As ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light; Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God... If this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments...? (Mosiah 18:8-10).

Those who have been ordained to the priesthood have made a further covenant to give all they have for the work of salvation. Specifically, a Melchizedek Priesthood holder covenants to live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (D&C 84:43-44); take the testimony of the Savior to the world (D&C 84:61-62); not boast of himself (D&C 84:73); become the Savior's friend and trust Him like a friend (D&C 84:63, 77-88); and fulfill responsibilities associated with the Abrahamic covenant (D&C 84:34)(see also Renlund, Dale G. and Ruth Lybbert Renlund. The Melchizedek Priesthood. Deseret News. 2018. 68-69.).

Through baptism and priesthood ordination, we covenant and promise with the Lord to give our will, first of all, to Him. Willing to give all we have and are to the Lord, we move forward with Paul's admonition in our hearts: "Know ye not that... ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

The Lord expects more than our devotion and righteous action, however. The first of the ten commandments given to the children of Israel in the wilderness was, "thou shalt have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). So the Lord taught his disciples:

He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it (Matthew 10:37-39).

In modern times, as in biblical times, the Lord has revealed his law of consecration. This law requires that we dedicate everything we have-- time, talents, possessions and resources-- to the Lord to care for His people and do His work. Thus, the author of Acts wrote that "all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need" (Acts 2:44-45). When we are not required to give all, we are instructed to remain willing to do so.

Even Joseph Smith, who was driven from state to state, slandered and falsely accused, betrayed by those who had been his associates and assaulted by those sworn to protect his rights, was asked to give all he had. Responding to Joseph's plea from the inhumane conditions of the Liberty Jail, the Lord reminded the prophet, "Thou art not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job" (D&C 121:10). On June 27, 1844, Joseph Smith would give his life for the Lord and His church.

Though the Lord's requirements can be a high price to pay, he offers much more in return. As we keep our baptismal covenant, we are promised the spirit of the Lord will comfort and strengthen us through our trials and sanctify us from our sins so we can one day inherit all the Father has. Honoring priesthood covenants entitles the priesthood holder to receive all the blessings of Abraham, to be sanctified by the Spirit to the renewing of their bodies, and again to become joint-heirs with Jesus Christ to our Heavenly Father's kingdom.

In short, for our best efforts to give of the little we really have, the Lord offers us a universe beyond our comprehension through the gift of His Only Begotten Son. As Christ taught his disciples, "Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life" (Matthew 19:29).

So it was with Job. Scripture records that "the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning;" for he acquired much larger herds, his friends returned and he was able to have ten more children, the fairest in the land, and lived to see the fourth generation of his posterity (Job 42:12). "So Job died," the record states, "being old and full of days" (Job 42:17).

Keys of the Kingdom

Years ago I accepted a position with a small swimming pool supply store in Salt Lake City. I was 18 at the time and ready to make the jump from mall retail to the grey area between management and indentured servitude. I was grateful to have some additional responsibility in my new job and for the support of a good store manager with whom I became fast friends.

After a few weeks in my new position, the store manager gave me a key to the store. He wanted me to open the store several days a week and run things until he could get there.

This felt like a major promotion. I remember setting multiple alarm clocks to make absolutely certain that I would wake up with enough time to stock the shelves, turn all the merchandise so it faced forward and prepare the registers for the day. The key to the store in my pocket and the trust it represented were sources of professional pride that elevated all aspects of my performance.

Two thousand years before I started stocking chlorine tablets and inflatable lounge chairs on long retail shelves, Christ had a similar conversation with his disciples. To Peter he said:

Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church... And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Matthew 16:18-19).

The keys to which Christ referred were not physical keys to a store, a chapel or even a temple. Instead Christ referred to priesthood keys that would authorize Peter and the other apostles to lead the church in Christ's absence. It is only by virtue of priesthood keys that divine authority can be accessed to perform saving ordinances and enter the kingdom of God. Though the keys themselves are not tangible, they are literally the 'keys of the kingdom'.

President Joseph Fielding Smith taught:

[Priesthood] keys are the right of presidency; they are the power and authority to govern and direct all of the Lord’s affairs on earth. Those who hold them have power to govern and control the manner in which all others may serve in the priesthood.

Elder Dale G. Renlund adds:

Some priesthood keys are given to all priesthood holders, and some priesthood keys are given only to leaders. Except in the case of Apostles, priesthood keys of leadership are held only temporarily and are relinquished upon a release. Priesthood keys are the mechanism by which the Lord organizes His priesthood on the earth. A man with priesthood keys has specific and special responsibilities in addition to those that accompany his ordination to an office in the priesthood (Renlund, Dale G. and Ruth Lybbert Renlund. The Melchizedek Priesthood. Deseret Book. 2018. 176.).

Ultimately, all priesthood authority belongs to the Lord, Jesus Christ. He has commissioned prophets and apostles in every dispensation and given them the keys necessary for their time. Moses was given stewardship over the keys of the gathering of Israel; Elias (possibly Melchezidek) held the keys for the dispensation of Abraham; and Elijah was responsible for the keys of sealing power, or the priesthood power to validate ordinances on earth and in heaven. These are just a few priesthood keys that have been entrusted to mankind; and still others, such as the keys to the powers of creation or resurrection, the Lord retains for himself.

Many of those who have received priesthood keys from the Lord, including Moses, Elias and Elijah, have appeared in modern times to restore those keys to the earth. Restored priesthood keys have, in turn, been passed down through ordinations performed by the laying on of hands. In this way, the same way the Savior himself gave the keys of the kingdom to his twelve apostles, each generation has been called to serve as prophets, apostles, bishops and quorum presidents. Only those who have been ordained in this way and by one holding the requisite priesthood keys are divinely authorized to act in the Lord's name for the salvation of His children.

Technology is now changing the way we understand keys. Fundamentally, keys are still needed to gain access to a facility, resources or functionality, but tangible keys are disappearing. Instead, digital keys are embedded in your new car fob, your nametag at work, the online password to your bank account and your favorite hotel chain app.

We cannot see priesthood keys, but that doesn't take away from their authority or their absolute necessity to gain access to the powers of heaven required to perform sacred saving ordinances. Those who hold priesthood keys have a solemn duty to be as diligent as I was on my first day opening the small swimming pool supply store in Salt Lake City. With worthy striving, the Lord promises that the work that is done to benefit His children on earth will be acknowledged in heaven-- that through His priesthood keys we may all gain access to the Kingdom of Heaven.