Section 137 explains the LDS perspective of heaven. You may have heard that Mormon's believe there are "levels" in heaven or that Mormons believe you only get to heaven if you are Mormon but these are common misconceptions. And, in case you missed that last part, the idea that Mormon's believe we are the only one's who make it to heaven is FALSE! Let me tell you what is true:
In first Corinthians 15:39-41 we read of three glories; one celestial, one telestial, and one terrestrial which are the "levels" of heaven, if you will. We believe that all good people will "make it" into heaven. In section 137 of D&C we learn that the Lord "will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts". In other words, if we have the desire to do good, to love unconditionally, to help those in need, to give of our excess, to volunteer our time, or anything else wholesome and worth while, and then turn those desires into actions, the Lord will bless us with eternal life in heaven.
To receive the highest degree of glory, that being the Celestial kingdom, we must be true disciples of Jesus Christ. We must try to emulate his attributes and follow his teachings. The fullness of his truth is taught in his church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and in order to be his true disciple, we must be baptized, as he was. Once we have entered the covenant of baptism, we must enter into other covenants including those made in the temple. Now, Joseph Smith had a vision of life in the Celestial kingdom where he saw his little brother, Alvin, who died before being able to enter into these covenants. Joseph was a little confused because as he understood it, Alvin should not have been worthy to enter into the Celestial kingdom. The Lord taught Joseph an important doctrine in verse 7,
"All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God. Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom".
This is a beautiful piece of doctrine. God wants to give us the choice. We always have the choice between His way or the way of the adversary. But sometimes, there are people who live their entire lives without fully understanding His way or without caring yet are still good people. He won't punish good people for not joining the LDS faith. He loves His children and gives us abundant opportunities to inherit all that he has. We will always have the choice.
I am Mormon. Or, to be proper, I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. My parents both joined the church in their teen years which means many members of my family are not LDS. I do not despair wondering if I will get to be in heaven with them. I know that they are deserving of eternal life in heaven and if they desire to receive all the blessings of the Celestial kingdom, they will have the opportunity to do so. I also think of my friend Lacy who died just after she was baptized. She was eight years old; so young and innocent. She has been promised, in section 137 that she will be an heir to the celestial kingdom.
There is something called cognitive dissonance where a person's faith doesn't resonate with their reasoning. I imagine that Joseph felt a bit of cognitive dissonance when seeing this vision of his brother. In the end, the Lord's way makes sense. He answers all the questions we are inclined to ask when we talk about heaven. All the questions, the "what if's", are clarified in D&C 137. The only question to ask now is why? The answer: because He loves us.
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