The Prophet and the Temple Point Us to Jesus Christ

From the grounds of the Washington D.C. Temple, an Apostle of Jesus Christ taught young adults across the world that the prophet and the temple point us to Jesus Christ.

Elder Clark G. Gilbert, a General Authority Seventy and the Church Commissioner of Education, introduced Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife, Kathy. A young adult choir, accompanied by a pianist, cellist, and violinist, shared a powerful rendition of the hymn, “Praise to the Lord.”

Elder Andersen discussed with young adults how the teachings of President Dallin H. Oaks and worship in the temple can bless their lives.

“In a world of commotion, confusion and so many distractions, as the world slides from its spiritual moorings, the prophet and the temple keep us anchored to our spiritual foundation,” Elder Andersen said. “The Lord sends compensatory power to you, His disciples. Two of the greatest compensatory blessings for the righteous are the teachings of the prophets and the gifts of the house of the Lord.”

The remarks were recorded October 18 and made available on November 2. Several times throughout the broadcast, young adults from around the world — Italy, Mozambique, Spain, and elsewhere — shared greetings and love with President Oaks and his wife, Sister Kristen Oaks.

Elder Andersen invited his wife, Kathy, to share her feelings about Sister Oaks. Sister Andersen was eager to share a video clip of President and Sister Oaks, which was posted on Sister Oaks’ birthday.

Today is the birthday of my wonderful wife, Kristen. How I love her and how grateful I am for our Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness for our families. Our relationship to God and the purpose of our mortal life are explained in terms of the family. pic.twitter.com/iodlWPQjIb

— Dallin H. Oaks (@OaksDallinH) October 15, 2025

Sister Andersen then added these reflections: “Sister Kristen Oaks is a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. Her life is so filled with faith and love. She is so tenderhearted, and I think she is a very sweet angel on earth.”

Elder Andersen focused on the teachings from President Oaks about standing for truth; family, marriage and children; and revelation. After showing video clips from President Oaks on these topics, Elder Andersen discussed the prophet’s teachings with young adults on the grounds of the Washington D.C. Temple.

Standing for Truth

Ensign College Speeches President Dallin H. Oaks, Elder Clark G. Gilbert

One teaching the Apostle shared from President Oaks on standing for truth came from a 2022 devotional at Ensign College.

“We live in perilous times when evil is being called good and good is being called evil (2 Nephi 15:20, Isaiah 5:20),” President Oaks said. “We must stand fast against the values and practices that draw us away from the Lord’s teachings and our covenants, privileges, and obligations. We can do this with love.”

October 2024 General Conference Following Christ

Another teaching on this topic came from the October 2024 general conference.

“Following Christ is not a casual or occasional practice,” President Oaks said. “It is a continuous commitment and way of life that should guide us at all times and in all places. His teachings and His example define the path for every disciple of Jesus Christ.”

Lindsay, a young adult, said standing for truth can be difficult — but is possible with Christ’s help.

“It can be hard, but you know you’re not alone,” she said. “You have the Spirit. If you ask for the Spirit to be with you in these delicate situations, then He’ll be able to guide you and give you the words that you need to share because you aren’t alone. You’re part of the greatest cause on earth, which is to be a disciple of Christ and to represent Him.”

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Marriage, Family and Children

On the topic of family, Elder Andersen shared several of President Oaks’ teachings, including from the most recent general conference.

October 2025 General Conference The Family-Centered Gospel of Jesus Christ

“Our relationship to God and the purpose of our mortal life are explained in terms of the family,” President Oaks said. “It is vital that Latter-day Saints do not lose their understanding of the purpose of marriage and the value of children. That is the future for which we strive. … The doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints centers on the family.”

Elder Andersen also shared this insight President Oaks made at a worldwide devotional for young adults in 2023.

May 2023 Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults Stand for Truth

“Marriage is central to the purpose of mortal life and what follows. We are children of a loving Heavenly Father who created us with the capacity to follow His commandment to multiply and replenish the earth,” President Oaks said. “That power of creation is one of the most precious gifts we have in mortal life. But central to that gift is the law of chastity, the commandment that our powers of procreation be expressed only within marriage between a man and a woman.”

A young adult married couple, Max and Nicole, told Elder Andersen that choosing to start a family has been a great blessing in their lives.

“I am grateful for President Oaks and other apostles and prophets who have taught the importance of marriage and family, which has helped me to make that a priority in my life and has brought some of the most amazing blessings into my life,” Max said.

Nicole spoke of the challenge of how to balance career and family.

“Max and I spent lots of time fasting and praying and going to the temple to try to learn how to balance those two things,” Nicole said. “And we felt prompted that if we put family first, that everything would work out. And we didn’t know sometimes month to month how things were going to work out, but it did. And I have a strong testimony of the importance of family and making family a priority.”

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Revelation

Finally, Elder Andersen shared a story (first shared by President Oaks at a general conference in 1992) of a life-threatening experience where guidance from the Holy Ghost saved President Oaks and a young man in Chicago from certain tragedy. After President Oaks helped a sister in his congregation up to her door in a troubled area of Chicago, a young man came out of nowhere with a gun in his hand, putting it into President Oaks’ stomach. After several tense exchanges, President Oaks described the inspiration that saved both their lives.

“Just as I was about to make my move, I had a unique experience,” President Oaks said. “I did not see anything or hear anything, but I knew something. I knew what would happen if I grabbed that gun. We would struggle, and I would turn the gun into that young man’s chest. It would fire, and he would die. I also understood that I must not have the blood of that young man on my conscience for the rest of my life.”

October 1992 General Conference Bible Stories and Personal Protection

Instead, President Oaks followed an impulse to put his right hand on the man’s shoulder and give him a lecture.

“With the gun back in my stomach, the young robber replied to my lecture by going through his demands for the third time,” President Oaks said. “But this time his voice was subdued. When he offered the final threat to kill me, he didn’t sound persuasive. When I refused again, he hesitated for a moment and then stuck the gun in his pocket and ran away. June unlocked the door, and we drove off, uttering a prayer of thanks. We had experienced the kind of miraculous protection illustrated in the Bible stories I had read as a boy.”

Kelson, a young adult, said, “One thing I've loved about this story that President Oaks shared, and that he often shares in other talks I've read by him, is how much personal revelation has been involved in his work and his daily activities. He talks about how he would receive revelation as a law student or in a variety of other examples he gives. And I really love that we can receive revelation in many different areas of our lives.”

Olivia, another young adult in the D.C. area, told Elder Andersen that some of the most personal revelations she has received came in the house of the Lord.

“I know we are guests in the temple,” Olivia said, “but I’ve really come to understand what it feels like to be a child at home as I sit in the temple and commune with God.”

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Toward the end of their remarks from the grounds of the Washington D.C. Temple, Elder and Sister Andersen shared their feelings about President Oaks. Sister Andersen read a scripture about Joseph Smith’s brother, Hyrum, that she said reminds her and her husband of President Oaks.

“I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart, and because he loveth that which is right before me,” it says.

“And that, we have said many, many times in our lives, is the heart of President Dallin H. Oaks,” Sister Andersen said.

Elder Andersen said he has been taught and tutored by President Oaks for more than 50 years — beginning when Elder Andersen was a student at Brigham Young University when President Oaks led that institution in the 1970s.

“While at BYU, through a series of events, I was able at times to interact personally with him,” Elder Andersen said. “I experienced his faith and his sense of fairness, thoughtfulness, and interest in individuals.”

That influence continued when Elder Andersen became a General Authority Seventy in 1993.

“In my 32 years as a General Authority, I, like my brethren, have been blessed by his willingness to teach me, to listen to me and share his remarkable wisdom with me,” Elder Andersen said. “He has been prepared and refined in the fire of adversity, renewed in his body and his mind to lead us at this time to speak in the name of the Lord.”

Elder Andersen closed by praising young adults’ devotion to Jesus Christ and encouraging them to stay close to the prophet and the temple.

“We thank God that you are with us as we prepare for the Lord’s Second Coming,” the Apostle said. “The prophet and the temple point us to Jesus Christ. … Along with the power of His Spirit, the prophet and the temple are two powerful compensatory blessings the Lord has given us in our troubled world to separate good from evil, to understand our true purpose in mortality, and to truly become His disciples.”