Sunday, December 23, 2018

Robert D. Hales Refuting the "Antinomian" Interpretation of D&C 132:26

Some critics (e.g., the Tanners) have often proof-texted D&C 132:26 as evidence that being sealed in the temple gives one a license to engage in any sin (with the exception of the shedding of innocent blood) and still be exalted in the Celestial Kingdom. I refuted this eisegesis in my article:


In his 1996 October General Conference talk, Robert D. Hales, in refuting the popular but very mistaken idea that a temple sealing ceremony is all that is needed to establish an eternal marriage (as if it is a form of “super-glue”) also refutes this antinomian interpretation of D&C 132:26:

As taught in this scripture, an eternal bond doesn’t just happen as a result of sealing covenants we make in the temple. How we conduct ourselves in this life will determine what we will be in all the eternities to come. To receive the blessings of the sealing that our Heavenly Father has given to us, we have to keep the commandments and conduct ourselves in such a way that our families will want to live with us in the eternities. (Robert D. Hales, "The Eternal Family," Ensign [November 1996], p. 65, emphasis added)