SYMBOLS OF THE SAVIOR IN THE BAPTISTRY

President Russell M. Nelson said, "The temple is ‘a house of learning, There we are taught in the Master’s way. His way differs from modes of others. His way is ancient and rich with symbolism." Most of us recognize symbolism in the covenants we make and even on the outer spaces of temples, but do know what the symbols of the Savior in the baptistry are? What do the twelve oxen, water, and font teach us about the Savior and how do these symbols point us back to the stories of Joshua, Moses, and many different cultures around the world? The baptistry offers many symbols and glimpses into the mission, work , and power of Christ if we know what we are looking for.

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CITATIONS:
Joshua 4:1-7,  Matthew 3:13, Moses 1:6, Exodus 2:1-5,10, Exodus 30:17-18, 21, 3 Nephi 27:19-20, 1 Kings 7:23,25, Exodus 14:11, 13-14, 21-22, Ezekiel 47:1,8,10,13, D&C 128:22, D&C 3:1-2, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 8:1 
David E. Sorensen, “Small Temples—Large Blessings,” Ensign, Feb. 2007
Michael R. Morris, “Symbolism and Temple Preparation”,  Ensign, October Doctrines of the Gospel, Student Manual, Chapter 15, “The Covenant of Baptism”
See Edward J. Brandt, “Why Are Oxen Used in the Design of Our Temples’ Baptismal Fonts?” Ensign, Mar. 1993, 55. 
Tonya, Forever Family Trees, Blog Post
Old Testament 2022 Manual, Thoughts to Keep in Mind: The House of Israel 
Russell M. Nelson, (“Why Palestine?” Missionary Training Center, October 11, 1994) 
Friend, August 1988, “Baby Moses”
Bible Dictionary, “Levites”
Scripture Helps, Genesis 6–11; Moses 8
Gerrit W. Gong, Liahona, May 2020
H. David Burton, “The Living Water, of Jesus Christ”, BYU Speech Jan. 2000
Peter B. Rawlins, "Endowed with Power," Religious Educator 13, no. 1 (2012): 125–139. 
Ask Gramps, “What does the arm raised to the square signify or mean?”, Sept. 7th, 2025
Gerald E. Hansen Jr, “4 Symbols to Watch For the Next Time You are Outside Temples, LDS Living, Jan. 30, 2017
Boyd K. Packer, “The Holy Temple,” 32 

Transcript

0:12

Hello, friends. Welcome to the Thinning of the Valve podcast. I'm your host, Tia Smith, and thanks again for putting up with me on this Topsy Turvy Week. I can guarantee you there is stuff going on behind the scenes that requires a shifting of sorts. It's going to benefit you and it's going to benefit me. But in the meantime, it literally is very, very difficult to learn all of these new processes. Needless to say, though, I am excited about what's coming. So please put up with all kind of the changes in the next couple of weeks and just know it is good in the sense that I believe it's going to put more people's eyes on it. But just pray for me, please. And thank you. Because trying to learn all of these new, these new apps and also traveling has is part of the deal as well. So it's taking time away from my normal podcast time, which is all day, every day, basically. So yes, there will be some shifts, but I'm excited about what's coming. Today we're going to be talking about the symbolism of the baptistry. Obviously, I think sometimes we focus on the ordinances and covenants and the symbolism contained within those. We also tend to focus on four good reasons, right? The ceiling room, the celestial room, the endowment room, uh, the initiatories. We're talking about all of those things, but I think sometimes we think the baptistry is a little bit vanilla. But when you actually study the symbolism that's contained within the baptistry itself, it is mind-blowing. And I honestly did not recognize that until I started studying this on my own as well. I just recently went and did baptisms with a different set of eyes based on the things that I'd been studying and learning. And it became this beautiful, beautiful, spirit-filled. I don't know if it's session is the right word, but it was truly remarkable how that changed my worship within the baptistry. And this is a great thing to discuss with your kids because they really that's the only place that they can regularly go in the temple. And it is a place that is filled if you will teach them with the knowledge of this uh Savior Jesus Christ. So I'm hoping that you will gain more understanding today and pass it on to your kids and grandkids to look for certain things within the baptistry and then teach them what those things are about. So let's get started because again, always there's a lot to cover. All right, we're gonna start with this quote by an insign article by David E. Sornson, and he writes, All temple ordinances are centered in Jesus Christ and his divine mission. Each ordinance is calculated to reveal to us something about Christ and our relationship to God. Obviously, that also extends to the ordinances of baptism, and it also extends into further the actual room or the font room that we all sit in and wait to have our uh ancestors really begin to walk that path with the savior. So it's important to remember that everything and anything in the temple, no matter where it is, can point us to the savior with the use and tools of the Holy Ghost as we ponder. So let's first understand what symbolism actually is. The temple is a house of learning, said Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. There we are taught in the Master's way. His way differs from modes of others. His way is ancient and rich with symbolism. This symbolism, using one thing to stand for or remind us of another thing or idea, has been central to the ordinances of the gospel since Adam and Eve. Now pay attention to that, my friends. We are going to revisit that in just a little while in ancient cultures within the study of the Baptistry today. He notes that the Savior has taught from the very, very beginning. Even our parents, Adam and Eve, learned through symbolism. It follows, just as symbols were used anciently to teach profound truths, Elder Nelson said, symbols likewise are used to teach in the temple today. It is necessary, therefore, he added, that we ponder the symbols presented in the temple and see the mighty realities for which each temple symbol stands. So it's important to remember that as we ponder the symbols that are presented to us, but sometimes I think we are so busy or so tired or so distracted that we don't see the symbols, anyways. There's symbolism in the clothes that we wear, there's symbolism on the walls, there's symbolism contained in the building themselves. But are there symbols within the baptistry? Well, that's what we're going to learn more about. Now let's talk about uh the symbolism of baptistry because I think sometimes when we're learning about baptism, we light on certain symbolic aspects that point us to the Savior all the time. And they're the same ones, and they are good. So we're going to talk about the obvious ones that we all talk about all the time. And then we're going to get into some more uh ones that may be a little bit hidden and that we haven't really talked about before. So, first of all, we understand that baptism symbolizes our birth into the kingdom of God. Obviously, it's the straight gate, it's the narrow way, it's our birth uh in becoming a saint is the first step. It is a pivotal event in our eternal progress. It symbolizes eternal realities, which are death, burial, and the resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ. Everything about the ordinance points to the Savior. But something that we have to remember, especially as we talk in the rest of this episode, is that the baptismal font was instituted as a similitude of the grave. This is important, and was commanded to be in a place underneath where the living are wont to assemble to show forth the living and the dead that all things may have their likeness. So the font itself, in the position in the temple, generally on the lowest level of the temple, is also a symbol. And the font is a symbol of the grave, which I think is just extraordinary because that's where the work begins for our dead. And because the Savior Jesus Christ was born, died, and was resurrected again, taking on him new life, we are also given new life, and so are our ancestors. And it's one of the reasons why the font is located where it's at. So we talk about that all the time. In this insign article, uh, David A. Edwards writes, symbols help with the spiritual communication. Through symbols, the Lord forges a link with us by using the things of this earth to represent the things of heaven. He has given us revelations, prophecies, teachings, ordinances, and ceremonies filled with symbols that can give us spiritual insights if we are prepared to receive them. This is what I love about symbols. A lot of times we can learn revelation through symbols. And I know a lot of friends who the Lord speaks to in that way. And what he does is he ties the things that we are aware of because we are immortals here on this earth, the things that surround us all the time, and uses those things, those symbols, to teach us of things of the eternal nature of heaven. Because clearly we're not there right now, and our minds have been darkened so that we cannot understand heavenly things to a certain extent unless we are taught them by the Spirit. And let me repeat that again: symbols help with this spiritual communication. So just by going to the temple and looking for symbols, we can receive revelation in ways that we wouldn't have otherwise. Our eyes, the understanding of our understanding, can be opened. This article follows: think about baptism. We put on white clothes, which represent purity. Then we enter the water, which represents the washing away of our sins through the atonement. After the words of the ordinances are spoken, we are immersed in the water. Going under the water imitates the death and burial of Jesus Christ. And it also represents the death of the natural man within us. Being raised again from the water imitates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and it also represents being born again as disciples of Christ under a covenant to follow him. Now we experience this generally for one time on this earth. We are essentially as we have died and are reborn. But the cool thing about the temples is that we can go and experience that for our ancestors who have passed to the other side of the veil. And we can do it as often as we want to or can. Remember, the font represents the grave. So we are literally helping our ancestors gain life to break the bonds of death and the grave because of the Savior Jesus Christ. And he patterned that himself through getting baptized himself. So those are normally kind of what we look at when we're looking at the baptistery. But let's start talking about some of the other ones that we may not be aware of. Obviously, when you go to the baptistry, you know, this is not on normal baptism stake centers. But when you go to the temple, every single temple has the 12 oxen represented. Now, who do they represent? Because we're not just talking about these bowls that are holding up a baptismal font. We don't even ponder what that means. We think, oh, well, the 12 oxen, 12 tribes of Israel, but it's so far removed from us. If we start to understand really who the 12 oxen are and what they represent, things will be brought to our minds and revelation will be given and our understanding will expand as we start to understand who the 12 oxen actually are. Brother Edward J. Brandt said, if you've performed baptisms for the dead, then temple symbolism isn't new to you. No doubt you've noticed that temple baptismal fonts rest on the back of 12 oxen. The 12 oxen symbolize two things, the tribes of Israel and the strength and power on which God's work rests. Understanding what the oxen and other temple symbols represent makes our vicarious work more meaningful. So let's understand the two things, which are the tribes of Israel, the oxen, and look at what they're actually holding up and supporting. So, first of all, who could the oxen represent? Well, we know it's the tribes of Israel, but if we study the names of the Savior, first of all, the Holy One of Israel, the God of Israel, or the Redeemer of Israel, we also can understand that each one of those oxen could also possibly represent the Savior and His work, for it is on His shoulders that we stand. It's because of His power that we can do His work. If the Savior had not done what He did, then we would not be able to rely on that power to actually save our ancestors to help save them or ourselves. So, first of all, the oxen not only represent the 12 tribes of Israel, but they also represent the Savior Jesus Christ. But let's go just a little bit further than that. In a blog post by Tanya, and I don't even know her last name, this quote stood out to me just immensely. We stand upon the shoulders of our past. So the 12 oxen can also represent our ancestors. We stand upon the works that they also performed in their lifetime to all to bring these temples to the world. You think about the amount of temples in our ancestors' day, and there was very, very few. It required a monumental effort from lots of our ancestors to be able to even build the first temple to bring these things to light. So when we're talking about the 12 oxen, let's just not think of them as some like ethereal number of the twa tribes of Israel. Remember, it they can represent the Savior and they can also represent our ancestors who have paved the way for us that we might do the work necessary for the rest of their generations. Okay, so now let's also think about who else the oxen can represent. In the Old Testament manual, it says this your patriarchal blessing declares your connection to one of the tribes of the house of Israel. That's more than an interesting piece of family history information. Being a part of the house of Israel means that you have a covenant relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. It means that you, like Abraham, are meant to be a blessing to God's children. It means, in the words of Peter, that ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that you should shoe forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. It means that you are one who preserves with God as you honor your covenants with him. It means that you are one who perseveres with God as you honor your covenants with him. So who could the twelve oxen also represent? You and me. Are we one of those oxen who the work is being carried forth upon our backs? When we walk into that baptismal font and look at those, that beautiful font, do we see ourselves within that work holding up the work of God? Are we one that the work of God can rest upon our shoulders as we go and participate? So the oxen aren't just uh bulls that represent 12 tribes that we're not connected to. It is every single one of us, you and me, who have made covenants with the Lord, who walk into those sacred houses and places, down to the lowest part of the temple, representing the grave, bearing off the work that we have been called upon to do, standing not only upon the shoulders of our ancestors and their work that they have brought forth before us, but also obviously the Savior Jesus Christ. The oxen point to the Savior and His work. They're holding up the work of freeing the prisoners from their graves. And it's beautiful imagery and symbolism when you think about it. When you look at yourself and one of those mighty animals represented there, and you think about your ancestors and the sacrifice that they toiled to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. We are all resting upon the shoulders of our Savior Jesus Christ. And it is beautiful and it is simple in its uh symbolism. If you want to know how God feels about you, then go to the Baptistry, my friends. You will find it a sacred place and space where God is aware of you and is relying on you to do the work that we promised that we would do. That's what it points to in our patriarchal blessings. Now let's talk about the River Jordan, obviously, because when we're talking about the font itself, we've talked about the the oxen, but there's something also about the water. And we're going to be talking about the water and uh kind of the outside of the font as we move along. In Joshua 4.1. Now we just learned this in our Come Follow Me study, and this was an interesting conversation that I had with my dear friend April Danes. She is a lover of Scotland, just like I am. She hails from that part of the world, and we were nerding out together about all things Scotland, and she pointed this out to me, and it was a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, symbolic representation of uh the River Jordan and Joshua. In Joshua 4, 1, it says, and it came to pass when all the people were clean, passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying, Now remember, we're thinking about this within context of the baptismal font. That you take, take you 12 men out of the people, out of every tribe, a man. Okay, so we're starting to see this uh passing over this river of Jordan. And so you can this is basically the saving uh uh space that the Israelites were finally welcomed into the promised land, right? This was Joshua, Moses had uh left them, and now how were they going to get to Zion? Well, it included water and it included twelve tribes, twelve of every tribe, twelve men, represented also as the font. And verse three of Joshua four, we read, And command ye them, saying, Take ye hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priest's feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place where ye shall lodge this night. So twelve men from every tw tribe, so the twelve tribes, each man, each tribe sending a mill, and they're to grab twelve stones. And it's where the priest's foot feet stood firm. So priests, stones, twelve, water. And verse four it says, Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had prepared of the children of Israel out of every tribe of man. So let's first focus on this river that needs to part, right? So the Israelites echoing the pattern that Moses obviously had led them through the wilderness several many years before, 40 years before, they're echoing that pattern, but using the same power and the same elements. In Matthew 3.13, how does this point us to Christ? Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him. So crossing the river Jordan for the for the people of Israel at the time is echoed in the pattern of the Savior being baptized in the River Jordan. It's a parting of the waters, right? It's a parting of the obstacle that stands in the way. Russell M. Nelson says the River Jordan was the site Jesus chose for his baptism by John to fulfill all righteousness. Is it significant that this sacred ordinance was performed and virtually the lowest body of fresh water on the planet? What does that remind you of? He is saying that it is significant that the Savior chose to be born or chose to get baptized in Jordan because it was literally the lowest body of fresh water on the planet. Planet. Where is the baptismal font located? Literally on the lowest level of each temple. He writes, could he have selected a lower place to symbolize the humble depths to which he went and from which he rose? By example, he wanted to teach us that he literally descended beneath all things to rise above all things. Surely this would signify that through our obedience and effort, we too can come from our deepest depths to ascend to lofty heights of our own destiny. So even the water in the font represents the River Jordan, which also represents that we can overcome all things. Even in our deepest sorrows, the deepest depths of those things that we struggle with, we can ascend to higher heights because we are destined to become saviors with a little s. This is patterned. Joshua was a savior with a little s. You can see this pattern then just contained within the font itself. Now let's read a little bit further about the twelve standing stones because we're furthering this interaction that Joshua is having with the children of Israel to get them to the promised land. We've talked about the water. Now let's talk about the twelve tribes sending each man who is prepared to bring these stones. In Joshua 1 5 we read, And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel. You can see this echoing already. We have stones of the twelve tribes represented in the baptistry on the shoulders of those oxen, echoing the pattern in Joshua. Verse six, that this may be a sign among you that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? Then ye shall answer them that the waters of Jordan were cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord when it passed over Jordan. These waters of Jordan were cut off, and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel forever. So these men were commanded to bring these stones, to stand upon these stones, carry them on their shoulders to mark the place where the miracle happened, where the deliverance happened. Twelve standing stones. And what were they for? They were to be used in part for a memorial unto the children of Israel forever, to remind us not only of the mission that they that they performed and that God was in the details and saved them, but also for generations to come, would remember that the work of the law, work of the Lord will move forward. There was a marking of that place with 12 standing stones. It was hugely, hugely sacred to these people. Now, here's the cool thing that my friend April pointed out, and we talked just a little bit about that in previous ones, uh, episodes where we talked about um the prayer circles, and we talked about how they're all over England. We we talked a teeny bit about standing stones, but I wanted to just point out really quickly. Remember, in the beginning of this episode, we read from President Nelson that these were taught anciently, symbols were taught anciently to Adam and Eve, and that these standing stones also were a representative or a symbol of the saving power of Jesus Christ. Now, here's the cool thing is that there are standing stones in many, many, many different places around the world. Scotland is home to some of the oldest and most significant Neolithic standing stones and stone circles on earth. Shrouded in ancient myth and legend, their meaning and purpose are lost to time. Though archaeologists believe they have been may have been used in astronomy and religious ceremonies. Now, most of these standing stones are for religious purposes, burial rites, funerals. In fact, a lot of times when you see these stones, it echoes kind of this experience with death and with funerals. Now, I'm going to just mention a few in Scotland. Excuse me. Mockery Moore, Ring of Broadgar, that kind of sounds Lord of the Rings-ish. Kilmartin Glenn, Callanay, Stennis. You also have some in Ireland, Dromberg, Balino, Beltany, Canmar, Athren, Athren, Ath Grainy. There's some in Africa called Senangabia. There's one in France, well, lots in France, actually, called Karnak. Argentina, they have one called Toffee del Toffee, Del Valle, Mein Hires, Easter Island is Moai, and Australia, Glen Ennis, and they're literally they're everywhere, especially in Europe, but they are literally everywhere, these standing stones. Each people obviously use them for different reasons, but they were very, very religious in nature. How in the world can you have something that is so singular the same around the world? These standing stones are in different cultures and different places. Why would that be? If you start to look at the patterns, you understand that for religious purposes, they were taught from their forefathers for these to be memorials. Now we don't exactly know what they're for, but the fact that they went through all of this effort to stand these stones so that people would remember is evident. So I just found that a little bit interesting. Go study it yourself, the standing stones around the world, and connect it back to Joshua's experience crossing the River Jordan. How did he do it? He used the twelve tribes, a man from every single tribe, with a stone to stand on as a memorial for the generations. We literally go to the baptistry and we see those same standing stones of oxen represented that the generations might be remembered forever and for eternal, um, eternal purposes. We understand that these things matter. It's so extraordinary to me that it's echoing in cultures around the world and that it echoes within the savior's testimony of what they're for, and also in remembrance of his power and his ability. Now, let's talk a little bit about Moses the Savior and the font. We've talked about the 12 tribes, we've talked about the water to a certain extent and how that points us to Christ. Now, let's talk about Moses and the Savior for a minute, because we know that Moses is a type of the savior, and that in contained within the way that he experienced life also echoed the pattern that the savior had to walk through as well. In The Friend, actually, we read Jochebed, an Israelite mother, had a baby boy. She did not want him to die. She hid him for three months, but he was growing bigger and bigger. She couldn't hide him much longer. She was wise and she had faith. She wove a basket and spread tart on it so that no water would get inside it. Then she placed her baby in the basket, carried it to the river, and put it among the reeds. We see that echoed in the pattern of the Savior. We have a mother who wants to protect her child and is warned in a dream by an angel through Joseph that they need to leave Egypt. Both Moses and Jesus Christ needed to leave Egypt for their safety. And uh in different ways and spaces, Moses a couple of times uh was able to go to Egypt and say, okay, you need to let the people go. Jesus Christ came so that the people would be let go from bondage, not just the Egyptian bondage, but all people. Moses 1.6, we read, and I have a work for thee, Moses, my son. Now put put yourself in this in relation to the baptistry. And I have a work for thee, my for thee, Moses, my son, or my daughter, put your name in there. And thou art in the similitude of mine only begotten, and mine only begotten is and shall be the savior, for he is full of grace and truth. But there is no God beside me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all. So let's look then at the baptismal font. I think sometimes the 12 oxen are noticeable, but we do not look further onto the font, and I think there it's on most of them. Don't quote me on that, but I think it's this design. Is there are reeds in between the 12 oxen? Now, what does that represent? When I started learning about this and started realizing that even the backdrop that the oxen are set against means something. And it's pointing us to Moses. It's pointing us to the reeds because he was saved that he might be a savior with a little S, that he might be a gatherer. So next time you're around the fonts, look for the reeds. Moses and Jesus Christ are both deliverers. In Exodus 2, so we're going to we're going to talk more about this read connection on the baptismal fonts. Exodus 2, and there went a man of the house of Levi and took to wife a daughter of Levi. Now that's important. Just remember that. And the woman conceived and bare a son, and when she saw him, that he was a goodly child, she hid him for three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein, and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink. And his sister stood afar off to wit what would be done to him. And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river, and her maidens walked along by the riverside, and when she saw the ark among the flags, or the reeds, she sent her maid to fetch it, and the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son, and she called his name Moses, she said, because I drew him out of the water. So first of all, let's just talk about there's a lot of symbolism that relates to the baptismal font in there. When they're talking about Levi, it is the tribe of Levi who was in charge of the temple ordinances and covenants and making that work in the house of the Lord during Moses' time and subsequently later. So you have this woman who is of the tribe that was in charge of the temple. She wants to protect him. So she takes him to the river's edge and fixes this basket. Now she has to make it waterproof, right? Because he's going to have to go through water. She's in the reeds. And she was able to save this baby by putting him into the river. And I think it's interesting that Pharaoh's uh daughter came and found him as she washed herself in the river. What happens when we go to the baptistery? We are literally washing away the sins that we have not only committed ourselves, but we are standing in proxy for our ancestors and their sins as well. So she's washing herself at the river and she pulls this baby out of the water. What happens when we are baptized? We get pulled out of the water. It is a beautiful scene that we can ponder on and think, okay, I am actually emulating not only the pattern of Jesus Christ, but I'm also emulating the pattern of Moses of being deliverers. They were saved that they could be a deliverer. You and I were saved for these last days that we also can be deliverers by partaking of the water and the ordinances and covenants of baptism because of the Savior Jesus Christ. Bible dictionary says of the Levites, descendants of Levi, the work of ministering in the sanctuary was assigned to this tribe. Levites, the Levites are sometimes spoken of as distinct from the priests, generally assisted in the temple. The Levites were themselves offered as a wave offering on behalf of the children of Israel. They thus became God's peculiar property given to him in place of the firstborn. Are we echoing that pattern then of Moses, who was a Levite, who was brought out of the river, and who was literally saved that he might become a peculiar, peculiar property in place of the firstborn patterned after the Savior. Now let's look at the basket that Moses was placed in. What is significant about the coating of pitch on the ark? God told Noah to pitch the ark just like Moses' mother did to this basket. God told Noah to pitch the ark, meaning to cover it with pitch, a tar-like substance, to seal it and make it waterproof. The Hebrew word translated as pitch is also the root word for atone. It has been suggested that the atonement of Jesus Christ provides us with a protective covering. It shields us from the power of the adversary, just as the pitch protected the ark from the life-threatening waters. Now you think about the baptistry and then subsequently the confirmation, the protection that comes from that, emulating the strength and power of the Savior as He did his mighty work. The pitch was the same kind of pitch used on Noah's Ark as Moses' basket. We are literally cleansing and in a sense making our ancestors waterproof from sin as we allow them the ability and offer them standing in proxy to make that covenant with the Savior, being covered with a protective shield. It is beautiful to think about. Garrett W. Gong said, the angel of death, which was symbolized by Egypt at the time, remember, the Savior and Moses were brought out of Egypt, passed by the houses marked with the symbolic blood of the Lamb. The passing by or Passover represents Jesus Christ ultimately overcoming death. Indeed, the atoning blood of the Lamb of God gives our good shepherd power to gather his people in all places and circumstances into the safety of his fold on both sides of the veil. When we symbolize walking into the grave, standing on the shoulders of our ancestors on the Savior Jesus Christ, and even representing ourselves, we are overcoming death by connecting them to the Savior. So when you walk into the font, look at those reads. What does that mean? Who are you representing as you walk into that beautiful font? Who are you helping? What are you helping them from? And how does that point you to the Savior? It is a it is uh there's so many things within the temple baptistry that we probably just don't pay attention to. Now we're going to talk about the lava the laver of water. Now, this is in Moses' tabernacle, okay, and this is signifying to a certain extent the pattern that our baptist baptistries and the fonts within the baptistries are patterned after. And Exodus 30, verse 17, and the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass to wash withal, and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein. Verse 21. So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not, and it shall be a statue forever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generation. So they had this laver of water within the Israelite temple at during Moses' time that represented a washing that they die not, because you had to be clean to enter the sanctuary. It is the same thing for us. The laver of water is represented in our baptismal fonts, that we are overcoming death for our generations as we allow them and offer them the covenants made to Jesus Christ, connecting the generations. So that's what the laver was used for in Moses' time. In third Nephi 27, verse 19, we read how that points us to Christ. And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom, therefore nothing entereth into his rest, save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith and the repentance of all their sins and their faithfulness unto the end. Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day. So even the Savior Himself points us to baptism, points us that after we are baptized and sanctified by the Holy Ghost, we to a certain extent are on the path to enter his kingdom. That is the straight gate, that is the narrow way, that is the entrance that leads us to the holy place. And we are helping not only ourselves but our ancestors doing that, emulating the pattern of Moses in his tabernacle. Because, my friends, the pattern is the same, the symbolism is the same. Let's talk then also following this water theme, I guess, the molten sea. Now the molten sea was something that was in uh the temple of King Solomon. So you have the the laver, the laver that was in Moses' tabernacle, and now you have the molten sea. First Kings we read about the molten sea. It says uh twenty three verse chapter seven verse twenty-three. And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from one brim to the other. It was round all about, and its height was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. Verse 25, and it stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east, and the sea was set above the upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward. So you can see the pattern that we see in our temples today was also in King Solomon's temple, patterned after Moses' tabernacle. So then let's learn a little bit more about that molten sea in Exodus 14, 11. And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? Wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us to carry us forth out of Egypt? And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still. Still and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show to you today. The Lord shall fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand and on their left. You see, my friends, when we are doing baptisms for our ancestors, it is emulating the pattern that Moses extended to the children of Israel in parting the Red Sea. We are literally, literally parting the waters for our ancestors, inviting them to come out of the graves and partake of their Savior Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice. So when we think about the children of Israel who are pointing us to the 12 oxen around the Baptist, uh the baptismal font, then we think about the water contained therein and what that represents, that we could think about the experience of not only Moses, but also of Joshua. In Doctrine Covenants 110, verse 11, how does that help us in our day? After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us, and Moses appeared before us. And what did he do? He committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north. Moses had experience. He had a relationship with God. He understood the power that it takes to be a gatherer. He understood the waters that were going to have to part for each one of us individually and for our deceased family members. Therefore, he was the one called upon to bring back the keys necessary that the seas would part again. And every time we go in and then come back out of the water, that in a sense is a sea parting. The waters matter in the baptistry. In Ezekiel 47, we read, The waters issue from the house of the Lord and heal the dead sea. Verse 1, it says, Afterward he brought me again into the door of the house, and behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward. Then he said unto me, These waters issue out towards the east country and go down into the desert and go into the sea, which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed. Verse ten, and it shall come to pass that the fishers shall stand upon it from Engedi even unto En Eglem, they shall be a place to stretch spread forth their nets, their fish shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many. Verse thirteen, thus saith the Lord God, this shall be the border whereby ye shall inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. So in this vision, Ezekiel's vision, he sees water coming from the house of the Lord to heal the dead sea. What does that represent? We see waters in the baptismal font in the house of the Lord healing those who are, quote, dead on the other side of the veil. And I think it's interesting that not only did he see the sealing the healing waters, which we see represented in the story of Moses and Joshua, but he saw fishers fishing many fish, exceedingly many, it says, pointing us to the work of the twelve tribes. All of that is contained in one vision. And yet we see just maybe the healing waters coming out, but we don't include the fishers that are there that are representing the twelve tribes of Israel. What does this sound like in our day? Now let's look at John 4 19. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. So the waters also represent the Savior Jesus Christ. He is the one that heals, he is the one that brings forth the dead. He is the one that makes sure that these ancestors are found by the fishers who are us. We see that this exclaimed in Doctrine Covenants 128-22, brethren, shall we not go on so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren, and on, on to the victory. Let your hearts rejoice and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing, let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Emmanuel, who hath ordained before the world was that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison, for the prisoners shall go free. When you are standing in place of your ancestor getting baptized, you are freeing them from the grave because of the healing waters of our Savior Jesus Christ. H. David Burton says, It is this living water freely offered by Jesus Christ that we all seek to quench our own spiritual thirst, and that is critically needed to end the gospel drought that continues to plague mankind. As his disciples, we are the primary distribution system for delivering the living water from its everlasting source to his cherished children in need. We largely determine who will receive the water as we, by our service, control the irrigation system headgates. We preserve the purity of the water as we reflect to the world the value of the living water in our own lives. If we irrigate when the living water is required, rather than when it is convenient for us, we determine its vitality. It is only the living water of Jesus Christ that can and will bring a happy, successful, and everlasting life to the children of men. I love that he points that as his disciples, we are the primary distribution system for delivering water to people not only on this side of the veil, but on the other side of the bell. And it's because of our service or lack of service that we control the irrigation system headgates. And when we go to the baptistry, we see the waters represented and the many, many different ways that we can look at those waters eventually pointing us to that living water of Jesus Christ. The grave is dead, but the water is living because of him. And we are his servants in distributing that saving water, that healing water to those on the other side of the bell. It's a beautiful thing to think about. All right, now we're going to talk about washing for a minute for a minute. Now, those of you who go to the temple and do washing anointings, I wanted to kind of bring together the two. The ordinance of washing corresponds to the initial ordinance of baptism, in that both are cleansing ordinances. Elder Bruce R. McConkey compared these two ordinances. Baptism is called the washing of regeneration, and it is the way non-members of the church gain the Holy Spirit by whose power they are cleansed and sanctified. But Paul here is here in Ephesians 5.26, speaking of how the Lord sanctifies the church, those who have already received the washing of regeneration. It would appear thus that he well may have had reference to those washings which the Lord says are performed only in a house which you have built to my name, and with reference to which he commanded, sanctify yourselves, yea, purify your hearts, and cleanse your hands and your feet before me, that I may make you clean, that I may testify unto your Father and your God and my God, that you are clean from the blood of this wicked generation. The command to purify and sanctify ourselves, to rid ourselves of sin through the atonement, precedes the command to preach the gospel. Since the powers of godliness can be controlled or handled only upon the principles of righteousness, the command is always sanctify yourselves and ye shall be endowed with power, that ye may give even as I have spoken. If we faithfully proclaim the gospel, we then receive the promise that we will be cleansed from the blood and sins of this generation. The revelations illustrate these parallel commands. But purify your hearts before me, and then go ye into all the world and preach my gospel unto every creature who has not received it. Cleanse your hearts and your garments, lest the blood of this generation can be required at your hands. Baptism cleanses us from our own sins. Washings clean cleanse us from the sins of others. Our minds are thus directed to the salvation of our fellow men. So there is a certain type of washing called the washing of regeneration when we are baptized. And then the second washing that we are allowed, part of the endowment in the temple, and that helps us to be clean from society as a whole. So those waters of baptism, that cleansing, is a necessary first step in our journey of becoming more like him and becoming powerful disciples of Jesus Christ. And it echoes the uh washing ordinance in the temple. Now, let's talk a little bit about the circle and the square. Now, um, again, we're pointing to what happened, what happens in the baptistry and in the font itself. Let me read a couple of things about temple symbols, about the circle and the square. We try to make it as close to a square as possible because it reminds us of the temple symbols of the compass and the square. Now think about the ordinance itself in the baptistry, everything that we witness about it. Uh, you standing in proxy, you have an officiator, one who holds the priesthood, who can baptize you. What does he do? What authority does he have? What does it look like? Now uh let's go on with this particular thought then. The compass makes a circle, and the square makes, wait for it, a square. When a circle inscribes a square, i.e., the circle is drawn inside the square to touch all four sides. This is an ancient symbol of the primordial mound. The square represents the earth, as in the four corners of the earth, and the circle represents heaven, as in one eternal round. This is a concept found in many ancient cultures as the place where heaven and earth meet. Here is another another culturally uh symbol that is used in many different cultures, along with like standing stones and everything else. Now, think of this in the Baptistry. Uh, when you're talking about a square, the square points to um the earth it points to the four sides of the earth. Now the oxen are also pointing to all north, east, south, and west. Okay. But we're talking about a circle. Where is the circle in the baptistry? Well, the font is a circle, right? Okay, well, then what's the square? Because when we're talking about circle and square, we're talking about a place where heaven and earth meet. That is the circle and the square, because the circle represents heaven and the square represents earth. The square we can see by the way that we are baptized. Raising your arm to the square inside uh a circle, which is opposite, but the symbolism can be just the same. A squared circle featured on the outside of many temples, this symbol has stood for centuries as the connection between God and man, with the circle representing the dome of heaven and the square representing the four corners of the earth. It reminds us of our purpose to meet with God in his holy house, and that human beings are mortal with the potential to become divine if they join with God through at one-ment and covenants. So raising your right arm to the square symbolizes a lot of different things. And we, and that's a whole nother episode for sure. But specifically within the baptistry, we see that happening. And because of that, we are reminded that we are in his house and that we can become like them because we have that potential as we join with them in the baptismal covenant. And so I love looking at this circle with the font and the square with the raising of your square, um, the officiator square to get baptized. Because it's a place where heaven and earth meet. It is overcoming the grave because of the power contained within the Savior Jesus Christ. We can become like him. And all of that is symbolized within the baptistry. Let's look at this a little bit further in Doctrine Covenants 3.1. The works and the designs and the purposes of God cannot be frustrated, neither can they come to naught. For God doth not walk in crooked paths, neither doth he turn to the right hand nor to the left, neither doth he vary from that which he hath said, and therefore his paths are straight, and his course is one eternal round. His work is one eternal round. We are standing in a circle, in the water, in the baptistry, the lowest part of the temple, it is part of the Lord's work, and that is the pattern. Why a circle? Why is the baptistry a s why is the font a circle? Why not a square? Why not a diamond shape? It's echoing the Savior's pattern that his works are one eternal round. In Romans 8 34, in relation to the arm to the square, how does that represent the Savior? It reads, Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. So I find it interesting that one of the descriptions of Jesus Christ is that he sits on the right hand of God and then added, maketh intercession for all of us. So we are literally participating in that same eternal round of work with the raising of the right hand, signifying Jesus Christ on the right hand of God, among other things. In Hebrews 8:1. Now of the things which we have spoken, this is the sum. We have such an high priest who is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens, again, referencing that Jesus Christ, his power, he sits on the right hand of God. And we are echoing that pattern in the font. You can see there's so many things to think about as you witness a baptism and as you participate in a baptism. I'm going to finish with this statement by Boyd K. Packer, because I think in the beginning we focused on this, and hopefully, this is going to be a reminder. Uh he says, if you will go to the temple and remember that the teaching is symbolic, you will never go in the proper spirit without coming away with your vision extended, feeling a little more exalted with your knowledge increased as to the things that are spiritual. Now, I think sometimes we relegate that to uh the washing anointings, the endowment, the ceilings, that we can have our vision extended within that part of the holy house. But we can also, my friends, have your have our vision extended within the baptistry. Look for the patterns of the savior in everything that you're looking at. Look at the reeds, look at the oxen, look at the water, look at the font itself. There are many things in there that point to the savior Jesus Christ and his work in all of the ways. Pointing us to the fact that we can be saviors on Mount Zion, emulating his pattern as a deliverer, Moses' pattern as deliverer, fulfilling the prophecies in Ezekiel's dream, fulfilling the prophecies of all the prophets from before. They looked forward to this day. I don't imagine what they were able to see. Did they see the fonts? Did they see the symbolism and recognize that? And sitting in that baptistry, you can receive knowledge upon knowledge with your vision extended to all things spiritual. For that is where heaven begins to uh that is the point and place in the temple where heaven is beginning to form itself. Teach these things to your children, my friends. Ponder on these things and watch what you are taught by the Spirit, even in the confirmation room. We didn't even get to that. I hope you've enjoyed today's episode. I know that it really opened my eyes as I was studying, and my worship in the baptistry has become a lot more fuller and richer in understanding our Savior Jesus Christ. Uh, please join us tomorrow and also on Friday, and then we will start again next week. We will see. We're not quite, I'm not quite sure how it all is going to work itself out, but the Lord willing, it will. I'm grateful for you joining me today, my friends. Have a great day, and we'll talk to you soon. Bye.