The First Four Levels of Mankind

Disclaimer: What follows is solely the opinion of the author and not official doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Though knowledge of the LDS temple endowment is not necessary to benefit from this article, this knowledge will certainly be helpful. Please pray for the spirit, ponder these words, and pray to confirm whether these words are true.

A Model of Herod's Temple

Introduction

In the last article, The Seven Levels of Mankind, I presented the sacred numbers seven and eight and how they pertain to dispensations, to the archangels or dispensation heads, and to ascension of souls. In this article, I will break down and discuss the first four levels and align them to the respective ministry of each dispensation and to the laws of the gospel. 

Level One, Overcoming Evil

Revelation 2:7 To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

The tree of life can have two meanings. The first is as given in Genesis where God placed cherubim and a flaming sword to protect the tree of life from man lest he partake and live in his sins forever. The second is as given in 1 Nephi where the fruit represents eternal life. I believe the tree in Revelation 2:7 is the former and refers to the promised reward of overcoming the first estate – salvation from physical death. This is the first level of the ascension of souls.

How is this level overcome? We LDS believe that we existed before we were born on earth and we chose to follow the plan of salvation as presented to us by the premortal Jesus Christ who was chosen by Heavenly Father to be our Savior. There was a division of souls—those who chose to follow the plan and those who chose to rebel and follow Satan. After this division, there was a war in heaven. The souls who rebelled are Satan and his angels and they will never receive a body. And though not all who elected to follow the Savior’s plan will be resurrected at the same time, a resurrection will occur for every soul who comes to earth.

At the end of the last article, The Seven Levels Mankind, I showed how the levels and archangels or dispensation heads are inverted. The first dispensation was hosted by the seventh archangel or level seven souls, Michael or Adam. The last dispensation was hosted by the first archangel Joseph Smith, whose angel name we don’t know for certain though many have speculated.

I believe each dispensation head’s ministry is an illustrative example of how to overcome the level of souls over which they preside. I do believe Joseph Smith presided over level one souls both in the premortal life, in this life, and in the hereafter. However, the attempt to decipher how his ministry was an example to level one souls is rather tricky and will likely require a separate article. Suffice it now to say that Joseph Smith was loyal in the face of extreme adversity and was loyal in the face of fear and in the face of failure. I believe fear and failure are the two primary causes of a soul to rebel and can be seen all over the scriptures. Laman and Lemuel are prime examples of this. Extreme selfishness may also be an attribute of evil and indeed is a primary motivator to the souls on earth today who list to follow the precepts of the devil.  Joseph Smith’s life was also an example of selflessness as he gave of his time, talents, and ultimately his life without ever glutting on the labor of the saints who believed in him.

Though the initial sorting of level one souls occurred during the War in Heaven, we know souls can still rebel—even souls that are advanced in their progression and authority can still rebel and fall completely off their ascension and descend below level one and become perdition. Another way of looking at this level is separating good from evil. Indeed, the tree of knowledge of good and evil may be a symbol of how the evil souls are first sorted and cast out in any good creation.

So how does Joseph Smith’s dispensation align with the War in Heaven? Quite simply, he opened the dispensation of the fulness of times that ushers in the millennium whereupon the rebellious souls of the devil are imprisoned at the end of this very dispensation at the advent of the millennium.

D&C 88:110 And so on, until the seventh angel shall sound his trump; and he shall stand forth upon the land and upon the sea, and swear in the name of him who sitteth upon the throne, that there shall be time no longer; and Satan shall be bound, that old serpent, who is called the devil, and shall not be loosed for the space of a thousand years.

Indeed, students of the Book of Revelation understand that the devil is given one last crack at the world but will ultimately fail.  This is the dispensation where failed level one souls are revealed and imprisoned.

Level Two, Overcoming the Natural Man

Revelation 2:11 He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

To understand overcoming level two, we must understand what is the second death.

Alma 12:16 And now behold, I say unto you then cometh a death, even a second death, which is a spiritual death; then is a time that whosoever dieth in his sins, as to a temporal death, shall also die a spiritual death; yea, he shall die as to things pertaining unto righteousness.

So, to overcome spiritual death, one basically has to do the opposite of what Alma says here.  Don’t die in your sins and don’t die to things as pertaining to righteousness.  Simple.  Here’s how:

The Fourth Article of Faith: We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

To overcome level two, one must repent of sins and be baptized.  We LDS believe this can be done beyond the veil through temple work, though we also preach that repentance without a body is more difficult which makes sense. Here is why:

Mosiah 3:19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

The natural man is the natural carnal desires of our bodies. We are given bodies to learn and we are either overcome by the natural yearnings of the body or we overcome them through self-mastery through the atonement of Christ the Lord and through meekness, humility, patience, love and submission.

Peter, in my very humble opinion, is the dispensation head over level two beings and was the head of the sixth dispensation at the Lord’s behest just as the Lord is the God of this creation at Heavenly Father’s behest.  So how do we know that the sixth dispensation is the dispensation of level two beings.  To overcome the world, you must be baptized. Book of Mormon prophets Nephi and Alma preached this hundreds of years before Jesus Christ was born in the flesh.  The first prophets preached baptism thousands of years before Christ. (Moses 6:52) However, there was no organized concerted missionary effort to the world before the sixth dispensation. Why?  Here is the dispensations visual again that I shared in the last article from LDS.org.

Just as the last dispensation is where level one souls are bound, Peter’s dispensation is the time of level two souls, or the time of the gentiles.

D&C 45: 24 And this I have told you concerning Jerusalem; and when that day shall come, shall a remnant be scattered among all nations;

25 But they shall be gathered again; but they shall remain until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

26 And in that day shall be heard of wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion, and men’s hearts shall fail them, and they shall say that Christ delayeth his coming until the end of the earth.

27 And the love of men shall wax cold, and iniquity shall abound.

28 And when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel;

29 But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men.

30 And in that generation shall the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

The Lord calls this time, the time of the gentiles. The gathering of Israel occurs after the time of the gentiles is fulfilled (i.e. over.)  So Peter is over the gentiles which makes perfect sense!  First, the command given to Peter was to preach the gospel to all the world.  Second, Peter’s life was the perfect example of how to leave the world and join the church. Not only did he drop the fisherman’s nets and follow the Savior, he showed how to overcome the natural man. As the chief apostle, the world would esteem him and elevate him above the rest, but Peter was chastised more than any apostle.

Mark 8:33 But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.

Ouch. However, this was all part of Peter’s example to the gentiles.

Hebrews 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

Peter demonstrated this pattern of failure and repentance – and of persistence.  He also showed how to not only overcome the natural man but how to bring the body into complete submission through faith, and even then, somehow still managed to show how failure builds a reliance upon the Lord.

Matthew 14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

The word "penultimate" means "next-to-last" whereas ultimate means "last." In the context of the ultimate example to us all, Jesus Christ is the "last" example we should ever consider. I will use the word "penultimate" to describe the next to last, or the second best, example that is given to us on a given principle or law.  The Lord Jesus Christ gave us the ultimate example of overcoming the natural man by living a sinless life and by bringing His body into complete submission through fasting for forty days, through walking on water, through miracles, and through overcoming physical Death.  Peter's  is the penultimate example for the class or order of beings over which he presides. You can put your body into such submission through faith that you can walk on water, and when you sink you can reach out to the Lord crying, “save me.”  The time of the gentiles began with Peter.

Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Here is the question I presented at the beginning of the last article:

Why was there no concerted missionary effort until after Jesus Christ’s ministry?

Because this is the time of the gentiles. As you read on you will see how each dispensation is the time of the souls born into that level.

Level Three, The Law of Obedience

Revelation 2:17 To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

The manna is an obvious reference to the dispensation of Moses. In the last article, I identified this verse as one of the two key verses that align the levels with the dispensation heads, and I posed the following question:

• Why were the Israelites so terrible at being "Gods people?"
• If Moses lived in 1567 B.C. then why were Israelites confined to the lesser law of Moses for 1500 years based off the mistakes of their fathers?

Herein lies the answers to those questions. Level three is the first level of God’s people. Baptism is the gate. We LDS believe that gentiles are adopted into the House of Israel upon baptism. I believe this is how every member of Israel joined—is there one path and one plan of salvation or many?  These are the initiates. We do not believe in original sin, yet we preach that Moses presented the lesser law due to the wickedness of his people as they built a golden calf to worship while he was on Mount Sinai.

The Israelites were not doomed to the lesser law of Moses because the first generation at the time of Moses was wicked.  They may not have had the higher law withheld due to any mistakes or wickedness in the premortal life either. Just like The Melchizedek Priesthood is not withheld from our youth due to wickedness, The Aaronic Priesthood is given as the preparatory priesthood.

Finally, the Aaronic Priesthood is referred to as the preparatory priesthood. This, too, is a proper title because the Aaronic Priesthood prepares young men to hold the higher priesthood, for missions, and for temple marriage. ~ Boyd K. Packer, The Aaronic Priesthood, 1981 October General Conference

The Law of Moses was cruder than the higher law given by Jesus Christ.  The laws were more detailed and strict, and the penalties were more severe. Why? Just as a young child requires strict discipline, these young souls were initiates to being God’s people. Just as the time between Peter and Joseph Smith is referred to as “the time of the gentiles,” the time from Moses until Peter was the time of the initiates. Despite the Old Testament taking place almost entirely during this time, the law of Moses only existed by itself for one dispensation.  Again, why? The law of Moses is the schoolmaster to bring these young souls to Christ.

Galatians 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Alma 34: 14 And behold, this is the whole meaning of the law, every whit pointing to that great and last sacrifice; and that great and last sacrifice will be the Son of God, yea, infinite and eternal.

As I mentioned in the beginning, there is a law given in the temple that pertains to each dispensation from here on back to Adam.  This is the dispensation of obedience—the first law of heaven. Indeed the law of Moses reflects this first law of heaven with strict commandments and penalties.

How did Moses exemplify this law? Moses began his ministry at 40 years old. Though the number 40 is a sacred number reflected in the years of wandering and the days of the flood and fasting of Jesus Christ, anyone who is near this age or has passed it can tell you this is when people really get set in their ways. Moses was a prince of Egypt, living in the royal court. He forsook this life to join the cause of his enslaved people intervening on their behalf. He obeyed each command given to him against the pharaoh with increasing intensity. The penultimate example he gave was knowing that he would never see the promised land but was obedient to the end of his days, wandering with the children of Israel for 40 years until his death. Obedience to the end. Obedience, the law of Moses, the Aaronic Priesthood are the first laws and preparatory priesthood given to initiate souls to prepare them for the higher law of Jesus Christ.

So, what is the reward for overcoming level three? We know from revelation 2:17 that those who overcome receive a white stone and a new name. What is the purpose of the new name and why is it a secret? The benefit of modern revelation casts a light:

D&C 130:10 Then the white stone mentioned in Revelation 2:17, will become a Urim and Thummim to each individual who receives one, whereby things pertaining to a higher order of kingdoms will be made known;

11 And a white stone is given to each of those who come into the celestial kingdom, whereon is a new name written, which no man knoweth save he that receiveth it. The new name is the key word.

There are some beautiful truths exposed here. First, the stone is given to those who come into the celestial kingdom. We know that baptism is required to enter the celestial kingdom along with enduring to the end. So those who overcome level three inherit celestial glory, along with a new name and a white stone. Second, the white stone reveals things that pertain to a higher kingdom. This means that the journey does not end here! Many LDS believe if we are faithful in this one life we will be handed the keys of our very own galaxy or universe and becomes Gods almost magically. This is not so. The white stone given in the celestial kingdom is a tool to reveal “things” pertaining to higher order of kingdoms – plural.

Level Four, The Law of Sacrifice

This is the fourth dispensation whether you count forwards in chronological order as the dispensations are numbered by the LDS church or whether you count backwards in accordance to the level of soul over which the dispensation presides. 

Revelation 2:26-28 And to him who overcometh, and keepeth my commandments unto the end, will I give power over many kingdoms; And he shall rule them with the word of God; and they shall be in his hands as the vessels of clay in the hands of a potter; and he shall govern them by faith, with equity and justice, even as I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star.

Though not quite as overt as the third and sixth uses of “overcometh” in Revelation, this level does match up quite nicely with Abraham. Here is the Abrahamic Covenant.

Genesis 17:4 As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.

5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.

6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

Power over many kingdoms? Check. Rule over kingdoms with the word of God? Check. Remember the new name was to be given after overcoming level 3? As the representative of level four, Abram received the new name of Abraham. Check.

Here are some questions I presented at the beginning of the prior article:

·         Why was Israel enslaved for four hundred years?

·         Why were the twelve tribes of Israel born in the fourth dispensation and not the first, or second, or third?

As amazing as the story of Joseph of Egypt is, he and his brothers remained in Egypt and Israel was enslaved shortly thereafter. This enslavement was prophesied by the LORD to last four hundred years for the souls born during the time of level four beings. 

Genesis 15:13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;

14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.

Now imagine you are Abraham receiving this promise—sequentially this promise of enslavement is given in chapter 15 whereas the covenant is given in 17.  Likewise, this is the trial of level four beings whereas the covenant is the promise given to overcoming this level. But why enslavement?

This level is the level of the Law of Sacrifice. What better way to divorce yourself from the desires of the world than to live as a slave? Again, just as 1500 years of Israelites born to the golden calf worshipers likely did nothing to deserve the withholding of the higher law, 400 years of Israelites born to slavery were just as innocent if not more so.

“Let us here observe, that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation; … it is through the medium of the sacrifice of all earthly things that men do actually know that they are doing the things that are well pleasing in the sight of God. When a man has offered in sacrifice all that he has for the truth’s sake, not even withholding his life, and believing before God that he has been called to make this sacrifice because he seeks to do his will, he does know, most assuredly, that God does and will accept his sacrifice and offering, and that he has not, nor will not seek his face in vain. Under these circumstances, then, he can obtain the faith necessary for him to lay hold on eternal life” ~ Joseph Smith, Lectures on Faith

Choosing to be born into slavery would certainly qualify souls to accomplish Joseph Smith’s requirement to produce faith necessary unto life and salvation. The feast of the Passover indeed is a time for Israel to reflect on the faith and deliverance of the Israelites born into slavery.

And how did Abraham exemplify sacrifice himself as the dispensation head? Abraham’s life was one of sacrifice, where he had to sacrifice his namesake and his earthly inheritance when he obeyed God’s command to leave Ur and the land of his idolatrous father. And though he offered sacrifices of animals according to the law given to Adam, Abraham’s penultimate example of sacrifice was when he obeyed the command to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac only to be stopped by an angel.

We LDS believe that the lowest order of Celestial beings are the angels who receive no increase.  Overcoming level three seems to be the celestial threshold, as the promised reward is a white stone that is received upon entering the celestial kingdom per D&C 130.

D&C 132:16 Therefore, when they are out of the world they neither marry nor are given in marriage; but are appointed angels in heaven, which angels are ministering servants, to minister for those who are worthy of a far more, and an exceeding, and an eternal weight of glory.

17 For these angels did not abide my law; therefore, they cannot be enlarged, but remain separately and singly, without exaltation, in their saved condition, to all eternity; and from henceforth are not gods, but are angels of God forever and ever.

Certainly, D&C 132:16 also seems to apply to beings who have overcome level three but not four as “they cannot be enlarged.”  I believe overcoming level four requires a celestial marriage, for without a celestial marriage there can be no increase. The Abrahamic Covenant promises a continuation of seed, and an increase.  The Abrahamic Covenant as given in Abraham 2:8-11 adds more gravity to the promise:

Abraham2:10 And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father;

“Rise up” in my opinion is a direct reference to the resurrection, but not a permanent resurrection. I will make a separate article on multiple mortal probations eventually. As I have said, there is only one way to join Israel and that is by receiving the Gospel through baptism. Every soul who has been born into Israel was baptized physically in a prior life or world or creation.  This is what they “shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father” means.

Revelation 2:28 … And I will give him the morning star.

The Morning Star. This is a part of the promise of continuation. This is why the heavens wept over Lucifer, a son of the morning. He was an older soul who had overcome levels to become an angel in authority.

D&C 76:25 And this we saw also, and bear record, that an angel of God who was in authority in the presence of God, who rebelled against the Only Begotten Son whom the Father loved and who was in the bosom of the Father, was thrust down from the presence of God and the Son,

26 And was called Perdition, for the heavens wept over him—he was Lucifer, a son of the morning.

27 And we beheld, and lo, he is fallen! is fallen, even a son of the morning!

A son of the morning fell. An angel in authority is likely a being beyond level 4—remember overcoming level 4 is required to have an increase; otherwise you are a ministering angel only. (D&C 132:16) In fact, the number 666 could indicate the level of Lucifer which I will explain later.

D&C 130:30 Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins—from whose loins ye are, namely, my servant Joseph—which were to continue so long as they were in the world; and as touching Abraham and his seed, out of the world they should continue; both in the world and out of the world should they continue as innumerable as the stars; or, if ye were to count the sand upon the seashore ye could not number them.

Conclusion

In the interest of readability, I will break here. In the next article, I will cover levels five through eight.