Knowing who has the authority to preach the Gospel is vital.Otherwise, if everyone took it upon themselves to preach, there would be what I call spiritual mayhem, in that in almost no time at all, few would be able to discern between true and false doctrine. This means that even fewer would know what to do - what steps to take, what covenants to make and keep - to make it back to the Celestial Kingdom, to dwell eternally with their families and God.
Spiritual mayhem, indeed. Talk about being "tossed to and fro, and carried about" (Ephesians 4:14).
Elder Neil L. Anderson, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, points out: "There is an important principle that governs the doctrine of the church. The doctrine is taught by all fifteen members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve. It is not hidden in some obscure paragraph of one talk . . .our doctrine is not difficult to find" (October 2012 General Conference).
When it was revealed that any worthy boy or man, regardless of race, should also receive the Priesthood, some members of the Church grew angry and confused. Defensively, they would refer to what General Authorities (including Apostles and Prophets) had said contrary to the new revelation given to ordain all worthy men of all races to the Priesthood. To these angry accusations, Elder Bruce R. McConkie (former member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles) stated: " . . .all I can say . . . is that it is time disbelieving people repented and got in line and believed in a living, modern prophet. Forget everything that I have said, or what President Brigham Young or President George Q. Cannon or whomsoever has said in days past that is contrary to the present revelation" (CES Religious Educators Symposium, 18 August, 1978). In other words, the doctrine of the church is received by revelation by the President of the Church, and supported by all 14 others of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. One of my dear friends, while striving to defend the certain principles, will often quote the talks of General Authorities long since deceased, and, while these lines are powerful and often true, it is important to verify that the same principles are being taught, as Elder Anderson says, by all 15 members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve.
The doctrine is not difficult to find. Yet, if we all stepped out of our authorized bounds, it would be.
A person must be authorized to preach the Gospel, because with that authorization comes the guidance of the Holy Ghost in knowing specifically how to preach to any particular individual. An authorized minister can come to know perfectly what their listeners need. They can discern thoughts and feelings, and can know exactly what to say or do, so that the Holy Ghost can confirm in the listener's heart the truth of what is being preached.
An example of this can be found in the Book of Mormon, when Ammon is preaching the Gospel to King Lamoni, a Lamanite. At one point, Lamoni is so overwhelmed with how powerfully Ammon's message is touching his heart that he asks: "How knowest thou the thoughts of my heart?" (Alma 18:19). To which Ammon responds: "I am a man . . . .and I am called by [God's] Holy Spirit to teach these things . . . .And a portion of that Spirit dwelleth in me, which giveth me knowedge, and also power . . . " (Alma 18:34-35).
If an individual does not have authority, they will not have the guidance of the Spirit in preaching the Gospel. The command is to "preach [the] gospel by the Spirit, even the Comforter which was sent froth to teach the truth.
"Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me (authorized) and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?
"And if it be by some other way it is not of God" (Doctrine and Covenants 50:14, 17-18, emphasis added).
Any returned missionary will quickly tell you that it was not them who convinced and converted their converts, but this Spirit of truth spoken of who carried the messages preached into the hearts of those heeding. Likewise, convert after convert will tell you: "I don't remember what the missionaries said, but I'll never forget what I felt."
Just as I was about to leave for my own mission, I was given a blessing by my Uncle Ron Hammond, who, at the time, was serving as an Area Authority for the Church, and, who previously served as a Mission President in Mexico. In that blessing my heart felt encouraged as he said: "I bless you, that on your mission you will know what to say at the right time; in the right place; to the right person; and for the right reason." That particular blessing was so appropriate for the journey I was about to embark on - to preach the Gospel. Just two days later, I received a very similar blessing from my Stake President as he officially set me apart as a full-time missionary - a representative of Jesus Christ.
And I felt set apart! For the entire two years of my mission, I knew in my heart that I was authorized to preach the Gospel. I lived differently; I loved differently; I spoke differently. When my two years ended, I felt that authority leave me when I took off my badge and cried for hours over it. I could barely listen as my Stake President told me that I was no longer responsible for preaching the Gospel, but that now my responsibility was to get an education, remain faithful in the church, and find and marry a wife in the temple. There is a difference between those authorized and those not. The authorized are not better, but simply are given a separate task that the Lord has called only them to do.
So, what would happen if someone without authority (without the Spirit of truth) attempted to preach the Gospel? In my experience, I have only seen one outcome: contention.
Because the Spirit isn't there to guide and direct unauthorized preaching, people can quickly become confused, defensive, and argumentative. These things quickly lead to the preaching of opinions and other false doctrines, which will usually not be accepted by whomever is being preached to.
Think of it this way: Pretend that I am the ice-cream man, driving my little ice-cream truck through town. While driving, I spot you speeding in your own car, swerving around me to get ahead. When I see this, I blare my ice-cream truck music as loud as it can go. I follow you, pull up to your side, and motion you to pull over. Because you're humble, you do so.
Pompously, I walk up to your door and tell you that I saw you speeding, and that I've written up a ticket. What would you say to that? I have several things that I'd say, some of them being: "Whatever!" or "Get lost!" or "You can't do that, you don't have authority!"
Soon, a heated argument erupts between us; me telling you not to speed; you telling me to mind my own business, etc. And how will it end? Most likely by you getting tired if me and pulling away, while I shout at the rear of your car.
Now pretend a similar situation happens in which "speeding" is "you not coming to church", and handing you a ticket is "telling you to repent." And remember, I'm not a cop.
The following is a real dialogue of someone attempting to preach the Gospel to another person, who was once a member of the Church, but has left. Notice how the one being preached to responds.
Unauthorized preacher: “ Now, there is a single message I'd like to leave with-something that I have needed to do for a while now . . . Repent and turn back to the God who created you and sustains your breath from day to day~our Father in Heaven who knows and loves you with a love that is powerful and pure. There will come a time in your life when I'm certain the last thing on your mind will be what our church
is doing wrong...it is a shaky foundation you have created for yourself. When you've hit rock bottom, you'll know whether your own intelligence is enough to sustain you. When your life comes to a close, I hope it will have been spent well, and I'd challenge you to stop spending it opposing a religion that ought to mean nothing to you by now. Leave it alone-allow us to live it in peace, and live your life in "freedom" as you profess to have found.”
Preachee: "I’m sickened by your comment (by much of it, but mostly the end). I’m afraid that many believers share your apparent wish that we ex-believers hit rock bottom so that we’ll turn around, repent, and realize the error of our ways. “When you’ve hit rock bottom . . . .” I don't wish that on any other honest and good people, regardless of their creed."
Whew! I'm glad I wasn't there. Can you feel the contention? But, more importantly, do you see how the unauthorized preacher has a beautiful testimony, and could have simply shared it, but didn't? Do you see how the preaching was completely useless, and led to nowhere? If this person was authorized, how different do you imagine it would have been?
I know that I imagine that it would have been full of love, even if the "preachee" didn't accept anything in the end. I see that there was an opportunity for mutual understanding, and room for the Spirit, who, instead, was thrown out like dog waste.
The most annoying part about this, and the reason why I groan so deeply, is that a lot of the time when this sort of thing happens, the preachee associates this kind of bad preaching to all members of the Church. You can know that this particular example wasn't the first time this sort of thing has happened either. Have you ever heard anyone say "Mormons are so judgmental" or "Mormons don't accept people"? I'm no gambler, but I would bet that these types of conversations and false preaching are the reasons why many of these statements are ever made about the Church of Jesus Christ.
Do you see what I mean? Have you ever had a similar experience? This can change, but what can we do? Let's discuss now sharing the Gospel.
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