“The Purpose of the Creation,” Ensign, January 2018
Until We Meet Again
The Purpose of the Creation
From “Celestial Marriages and Eternal Families,” Ensign, May 1980, 15–18. Spelling and punctuation standardized.
We can each make of our home a heaven on earth.
Let us consider … the purpose of the creation of the earth. The scriptures make it clear that it was … to provide a place for the sons and daughters of God to dwell in mortality and prove themselves worthy, through keeping the commandments, to return to the presence of God from whence they came.
Following the creation of the earth, “God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. …
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it” (Genesis 1:26–28).
When God created woman and brought her to the man, he said:
“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
Yes, marriage is ordained of God, and following that first reference to husband and wife, we find recurring scriptures as evidence that men and women became husbands and wives in marriage ceremonies. … We are not here just to “eat, drink, and be merry” (2 Nephi 28:7). …
It is important for us to understand, as we can learn from the scriptures, that God is eternal, that His creations are eternal, and that His truths are eternal. Therefore, when He gave Eve to Adam in marriage, that union would be eternal. …
… When parents understand the purpose of their existence, that they are literally the spiritual offspring of their Father in Heaven and that they have a responsibility to provide mortal bodies for others, then they rejoice in the miracle of birth as they realize they are copartners with God in the creation of each child who comes into that home. …
I know that through the gospel of Jesus Christ, and through keeping the commandments of God and the covenants we make with Him, we can each make of our home a heaven on earth while we prepare ourselves and our children to return to our Heavenly Father.