Temple Preparation: Lesson 203

Preparing to Enter the Temple Worthily

The Temple Recommend

In recent years the Lord has accelerated the building of temples across the world. Now more than ever, members of His Church have greater opportunities to enter His holy house when they are ready and worthy to do so. This lesson can help students reflect on their worthiness to enter Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ’s holy temple.

Student preparation: To help students prepare to learn more about the standards the Lord has set to enter the temple, invite them to read through the temple recommend questions found in the appendix of For the Strength of Youth: A Guide for Making Choices [2022]. Invite them to come to class with any questions they may have about these standards.

Possible Learning Activities

Recommended to the Lord

To help students consider the Lord’s standards to enter His house, you might invite them to think of their response to one or more of the following situations:

• Who would you recommend to:

  • Take an important soccer kick? Why?

  • Help you study for an upcoming test? Why?

  • Sing a solo? Why?

  • Give you directions? Why?

Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared an experience he had visiting his father-in-law near the end of his life. As Elder Rasband came to visit, his father-in-law’s bishop was leaving. He related what happened next:

I mentioned to Blaine [his father-in-law], “Wasn’t that nice of the bishop to come visit.”

Blaine looked at me and responded, “It was far more than that. I asked for the bishop to come because I wanted my temple recommend interview. I want to go recommended to the Lord.” And he did! (“Recommended to the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 23)

• What do you think it means to be “recommended to the Lord”?

If students don’t mention it, you might share that as part of Heavenly Father’s loving plan for His children, He and the Savior, Jesus Christ, have established standards to enter the temple. Following these standards recommend us to worthily enter Their house.

As we study today, pay close attention to feelings and thoughts that might come to your mind and heart through the Holy Ghost (see Doctrine and Covenants 8:2–3). This is how the Holy Ghost can help you recognize both what you are doing well, and ways you can improve in your efforts to follow Their standards to worthily enter Their house.

Entering the temple to worship the Lord

The following statement and scripture references can help students see that the Lord has established standards to enter His holy house. Consider organizing students into groups of three and assigning each member of the group to read one of the scripture references.

Read the following statement from Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the scriptures listed below, looking for what you can learn about entering the Lord’s house:

The temple is the Lord’s house and a sanctuary from the world. His Spirit envelops those who worship within those sacred walls. He sets the standards by which we enter as His guests. (“Recommended to the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 23)

Psalm 24:3–4 (“hill of the Lord” can represent the temple)

Jeremiah 7:1–3 (Jeremiah was the prophet during a time of wickedness in Judah.)

Ezekiel 44:4–5, 9 (“mark well” in verse 5 could mean to “pay attention to”; “uncircumcised in heart” in verse 9 could mean not separating themselves from sin and the world)

• What truths about entering the Lord’s house can we learn from Elder Rasband’s statement and these scripture passages?

  Students may identify a variety of truths such as:

  The Lord sets the standards of worthiness to enter His house.

  The Lord has instructed priesthood leaders to ensure that we enter His house worthily.

  You might want to explain that while everyone is invited to prepare to go to the temple, we must meet the Lord’s worthiness standard to enter His house.

• How are the Lord’s standards to enter His temple evidence of His love and desires for us?

As students answer the previous question, help them recognize that living the Lord’s standards help us become like Him, enable us to see what we are doing well in our efforts to come unto Him, and bless us with His Spirit and peace.

Temple recommend questions

To help students assess what they know about the Lord’s requirements to enter His house, invite students to review the temple recommend questions in the appendix of For the Strength of Youth: A Guide for Making Choices [2022] in Gospel Library. Alternatively, you could distribute physical copies of the guidebook, pages 36–37 from For the Strength of Youth guidebook or write the questions directly on the board.

Turn to the temple recommend questions that are found in the appendix of For the Strength of Youth: A Guide for Making Choices [2022] and do the following:

1. Read through the temple recommend questions and ponder (1) if you understand what the questions are asking and (2) how living these standards can prepare us to enter the Lord’s holy house.

2. Select one of the questions that you would like to learn more about.

Distribute a copy of the handout titled “The Temple Recommend Questions” to each student. Invite them to write the question they identified in the box at the top of the handout. Students could then complete the rest of the handout. Additional help in understanding some of the questions is found in the Additional Resources section of this lesson on Gospel Library.

Give students an opportunity to share insights they gained from the Holy Ghost in their study. You could do this by organizing them into small groups and inviting each person to share something they learned from their study. They could explain how what they found helps them understand the Lord’s standards to enter His house. Encourage students to record insights they learn from their classmates on the back of their handout.

• How could living the Lord’s standards to enter His house help us become more like Him?

• How are these standards evidence of His love?

Personal reflection

As students reflect on their worthiness to enter the temple, consider how your students may be feeling. What might be some of their concerns? How can you prepare to help them feel Heavenly Father’s love and the Savior’s assurance that through Him, they can be worthy? Reading the following statement is one way to help students feel hope that, they can worthily enter the Lord’s house with the Savior’s help.

Elder Patrick Kearon of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught how our Heavenly Father’s desires for His children to enter His kingdom. Consider how what he shares could also apply to His desire for His children to enter His holy house.

My friends, my fellow disciples on the road of mortal life, our Father’s beautiful plan, even His “fabulous” plan, is designed to bring you home, not to keep you out. No one has built a roadblock and stationed someone there to turn you around and send you away. In fact, it is the exact opposite. God is in relentless pursuit of you. He “wants all of His children to choose to return to Him,” and He employs every possible measure to bring you back. (“God’s Intent Is to Bring You Home,” Liahona, May 2024, 87) (time code 2:16 to 3:01)

Ensure that students have sufficient time to do the following reflection.

Reflect on your personal worthiness to enter the Lord’s house. One way you could do this is to reread the temple recommend questions and silently answer each one for yourself. In your study journal, or on the back of your handout, respond to the following question:

• What do you think Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want you to know, feel, or do?

Encourage students in their efforts to become or stay worthy to enter the temple and of the Savior’s willingness to help us prepare to enter His house.

Additional Resources

What does it mean to “support or promote any teachings, practices, or doctrine contrary to those of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?” (temple recommend question #7)

[The question] does not mean that you should stay away from people with other beliefs. If your Jewish friend invites you to his bar mitzvah, or your Catholic friend invites you to her confirmation, you can totally go support them and still get a temple recommend!

What it does mean is that you support the teachings and doctrine of the Church—in conversation, on social media, or anywhere else your voice is heard. You may not understand all teachings. You may even have unanswered questions. That’s totally OK! We can still choose to have faith while seeking for additional truth. (“What ‘contrary’ is—and isn’t,” ChurchofJesusChrist.org/inspiration/what-contrary-is-and-isnt)

Am I worthy to “enter the Lord’s house and participate in temple ordinances”? (temple recommend question #13)

Brother Bradley R. Wilcox of the Young Men’s General Presidency taught:

Some mistakenly receive the message that they are not worthy to participate fully in the gospel because they are not completely free of bad habits. God’s message is that worthiness is not flawlessness. Worthiness is being honest and trying. (“Worthiness Is Not Flawlessness,” Liahona, Nov. 2021, 62)

Supplemental Learning Activities

Recommended to the Lord

To help students deepen their understanding of the importance of a temple recommend, you could show “Recommended to the Lord,” from time code 2:07 to 5:43. Students could identify what a temple recommend is and what it isn’t. You could watch this before students conduct their personal reflection at the end of the lesson.

Good enough for the temple?

The last temple recommend question invites us to answer if we consider ourselves worthy to enter the temple. Some students may worry that they won’t ever be worthy enough. To help address these concerns, you might share the statement from Brother Bradley Wilcox from Additional Resources or share the experience found in the March 2019 Liahona titled “Good Enough for the Temple?” Invite students to share what they learned about being worthy to enter the temple.

Our preparation to enter the temple

It might be helpful to explain to students that preparation to enter the temple doesn’t just happen the first time we participate in the ordinances of baptism or endowment in the temple. Preparing to enter the temple is something we consistently need to do to worship the Lord. Consider printing copies of each statement below from Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and dividing them among students. Invite students to read their statement, share what they found insightful, and explain how that can help them prepare to enter the temple worthily each time they go.

If we change our preparation to enter the temple, we will change our experience in the temple, which will transform our lives outside of the temple. (“Covenant Confidence through Jesus Christ,” Liahona, May 2024, 18)

Preparation isn’t just for those going to the temple for the first time. We all should be perpetually preparing to go to the house of the Lord. (“Covenant Confidence through Jesus Christ,” Liahona, May 2024, 19)

The Savior desires that we become prepared to understand, with great clarity, exactly how to act as we make covenants with our Heavenly Father in His name. He wants us to be prepared to experience our privileges, promises, and responsibilities; to be prepared to have the spiritual insights and awakenings that we need in this life. (“Covenant Confidence through Jesus Christ,” Liahona, May 2024, 20)