The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood

While the Aaronic Priesthood is received absent a covenant being made with God, the Melchizedek Priesthood is received in conjunction with an oath and covenant. For my personal purposes, I have long thought of and compared the process of covenant making with the procedures followed in the making of a civil contract. There must be at least two parties involved in a contract if the agreement is to be valid. One of these parties is responsible for initiating the process by making an “offer” to the other party. In uncomplicated circumstances, the party making the offer is the party with the power to define the terms of the contract. “Acceptance” or rejection of the proposed terms is the prerogative of the other party.

When referring to the “offer” and the “acceptance” elements of a covenant between Deity and one or more of His mortal spirit offspring, we may speak of them as being the “oath” and the “covenant.” In these last days, God alone is able to initiate an oath and define its terms and conditions. This was not always the case. Under the Law of Moses, oaths taken or made by individuals were an integral part of Israel’s worship. However, in the meridian of time, the Lord made clear the initiating of oaths was then and for the future alone the prerogative of God. To the Nephites, He said, “And again it is written, thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths; But verily, verily, I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; Nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair black or white; But let your communication be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; for whatsoever cometh of more than these is evil” (3 Nephi 12:33-37).

Thus under the terms of the oath and covenant of the Melchizedek Priesthood, God sets forth the terms of the covenant, and we signify our acceptance of those terms through our accepting the conferral of the Melchizedek Priesthood by the laying on of hands by those possessing proper authority. The terms of this covenant are to be found in verses 33 through 41 of Section 84 of the Doctrine and Covenants. By accepting the Melchizedek Priesthood, the individual agrees to be a faithful bearer of the priesthood. As such, he agrees to “magnify” any calling he receives through proper priesthood authority. He likewise agrees to sustain the Lord’s anointed in their various callings. For by sustaining and receiving the Lord’s servants, he receives or accepts the Lord, and in turn, he submits himself to the will of our Heavenly Father as well as that of His Son, Jesus Christ. For His part, God promises a worthy priesthood holder that he will be sanctified, forgiven of his sins, and receive additional physical strength and mental ability to assist him in the fulfilling of his priesthood callings. If he earnestly seeks to fulfill his God-given potential here on earth by accepting all of the covenant opportunities available to him and proves to be faithful to the end, the priesthood bearer will inherit eternal life. This is nothing more or less than the net effect of the Covenant that God made with Abraham centuries ago. Thus as we read, the faithful “become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.”

The parties to civil contracts normally understand all too well that the other party or parties to the contract may, contrary to the law, breach their contractual obligations. Recourse for damages suffered by the innocent party or parties in such situations is in reality iffy. However, the situation is quite different when we consider the roles of the parties bound by a gospel covenant. If there is a breach of a covenant, the failure will be alone on the part of the human participant(s). God is God. Moroni taught that God “changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles” (Mormon 9:19). To the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord said, “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise” D&C 82:10). In this existence of ever changing conditions and circumstances in which we find ourselves seeking to work out our individual salvation, how reassuring it is to know that the Lord’s will, His gospel, and his love for us “changeth not.”