Elder Cook Discusses Kirtland Temple, Book of Mormon and Personal Testimony at Provo MTC Devotional

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By William Matheson, Church News

The historic events happening in and around the Kirtland Temple in the early years of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were “eternity-shaping,” said Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

“The Kirtland Temple, both in location and size, was relatively obscure. But in terms of its enormous significance to mankind, it was eternity-shaping,” Elder Cook said during a Tuesday night, March 12, devotional at the Provo Missionary Training Center. “Ancient prophets restored priesthood keys for the eternal saving ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

During the devotional, which was broadcast to all MTCs worldwide, Elder Cook, accompanied by his wife, Sister Mary Cook, noted the Church’s recent acquisition of the Kirtland Temple and expressed deep appreciation to Community of Christ, which has cared for the temple and other historic sites for many years. He praised Community of Christ’s stewardship of and respect for the properties.

The Kirtland events helped establish the latter-day gathering of Israel, which involves today’s missionaries, who need spiritual development and a strong, lifelong testimony of the Book of Mormon.

The appearance of Jesus Christ and the restoration of priesthood keys by Moses, Elias and Elijah at the Kirtland Temple were required for the Lord’s purposes to be accomplished on the earth, Elder Cook said. “That purpose has been simply but eloquently defined as gathering Israel, sealing them as families and preparing the world for the Lord’s Second Coming.”

Gathering of Israel

Making reference to Nephi’s vision of the gathering of Israel, Elder Cook detailed how the Saints of God would be upon the face of the earth. Though their numbers would be small, Nephi saw that the Saints would be “armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory” (1 Nephi 14:14).

“We are seeing the fulfillment of Nephi’s vision. Though our numbers are relatively few, we will continue our effort and outreach to those who will respond to the Savior’s message.”

Humility is required for missionaries to be able to do their work. A humble missionary is one who serves wherever he or she is called and who serves with all his or her heart, might, mind and strength, said Elder Cook.

“A mission is not a saving ordinance, but for almost all who serve, it is a profound foundation of faith. Personal foundations, like many worthwhile pursuits, are usually built slowly — one layer, one experience, one challenge, one setback and one success at a time,” Elder Cook said.

The Book of Mormon

Speaking of the importance of the Book of Mormon, Elder Cook emphasized the need for each missionary and lifelong disciple of Christ to develop and maintain a personal testimony of the Book of Mormon during the current season of their lives and beyond.

“You need to know this first to be effective missionaries, but second, and even more important, you need to know it as a fortification for life. It needs to be so deep in your soul that you can withstand the vicissitudes of life. In a world that is in commotion you need the protection and armor that comes from a testimony of the Book of Mormon.”

Spiritual Development

“One challenge with missionaries is that many of them want to have the kind of manifestation that Alma had or that which was recorded by the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon,” warned Elder Cook.

Talking of Laman and Lemuel, Elder Cook explained that simply having one powerful manifestation is not enough to bring about lasting conversion. The smaller and more common impressions that come by the Holy Ghost are just as or more important than the large spiritual manifestations.

Elder Cook quoted President Joseph Fielding Smith: “The impressions on the soul that come from the Holy Ghost are far more significant than a vision. It is where spirit speaks to spirit, and the imprint upon the soul is far more difficult to erase.”

Elder Cook shared the experience of his now-deceased friend Jerry Mitchell, who as a federal judge had a case regarding a large ship with an explosion on the deck. A picture of the ship was presented to individual witnesses so they could point out where they thought the explosion came from.

The witnesses had all undergone the same powerful experience, yet when they pointed where they thought the explosion was, there was only one commonality — everyone pointed to a different spot on the ship.

Of the experience, Mitchell said, “I have thought many times during the trial about witnessing an event in contrast to the constant impressions of the Holy Ghost about spiritual things. There is no question in my mind that those continuous impressions would be more lasting.”

Elder Cook shared how his testimony has grown from the first time he prayed about the truth of the Book of Mormon when he was 15 years old to his current testimony. “As I have studied the Book of Mormon throughout my life, the Holy Ghost has continuously borne witness to me that it is true.”

Impressions from Missionaries

After the devotional, missionaries spoke of their learnings from Elder Cook’s message.

Elder Gavin Low of Mapleton, Utah, assigned to the Tampa Florida Mission, said, “I just really liked how he pointed out that continual impressions from the Spirit have a greater impact than one big moment, so you need to cherish all those little impressions that you get,” he said.

Elder Matthew Sweat, from Heber, Utah, also going to the Tampa mission, added, “The thing that really stuck out to me was when he said that we need to commit and have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. In the past, I may have read some verses here or there, but I’ve never read it the whole way through.”

Sister Tommye-Lynn Hodgkiss, from American Falls, Idaho, assigned to serve in the Japan Sapporo Mission, said, “I loved how simple and clear his testimony was that the Book of Mormon is the foundation of our Church and that it can guide us towards happiness in this life.”

Sister Lindsey Aika Strong, from Modesto, California, also going to the Sapporo mission, spoke of how she loved the way Elder Cook encouraged the missionaries to mark all references to the Book of Mormon about Jesus Christ and His gospel. “You can tell that he’s so inspired, and I really loved how he told us to mark our scriptures because I’ve been looking for a way to mark them.”

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