Covenants and Ordinances Give Me Access to God’s Power and Blessings

Heavenly Father, whose plan of happiness is based on covenants with His children, has constantly reached out since the beginning of the world and made covenants with us, His spirit children.

Keeping these covenants not only shows our commitment to Him but also opens the windows of heaven, giving us access to His power and blessings in ways we could never find on our own.

We learn from Abraham that God intended obedience to covenants as one of the key tests of life before the foundation of this earth:

“Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones; . . .

“And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell⁠;

“And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them” (Abraham 3:22, 24–25).

Beginning with Adam and through the ages, faithful disciples such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have all made covenants with God and encouraged their posterity to honour these covenants.

We learn from Nephi, a Book of Mormon prophet, how God’s promises flow into the lives of those who make and honour covenants with Him.

“And he loveth those who will have him to be their God. Behold, he loved our fathers⁠, and he covenanted with them, yea, even Abraham, Isaac⁠, and Jacob⁠; and he remembered the covenants which he had made; wherefore, he did bring them out of the land of Egypt⁠” (1 Nephi 17:40).

In looking to the future, the Lord revealed the following through the Prophet Jeremiah:

“The days come, saith the Lord⁠, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel⁠, and with the house of Judah:

“Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord⁠:

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord⁠, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts⁠; and will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:31–33).

These covenants spoken of beautifully in all scriptural history till today are received by ordinances, which are symbolic representations of covenant terms.

“An ordinance is a sacred act or ceremony performed by the authority of the priesthood.”

Examples of ordinances include baptism, confirmation, the sacrament, and temple sealings.

Ordinances bring us closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

In general conference, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles emphasized how ordinances and covenants anchor us to the Lord:

“The sacred covenants and ordinances of the Savior’s restored gospel can be compared to the anchor pins and steel rods used to connect a building to bedrock. Every time we faithfully receive, review, remember, and renew sacred covenants, our spiritual anchors are secured ever more firmly and steadfastly to the ‘rock’ of Jesus Christ.”

The Lord taught that through these ordinances, we receive access to God’s power in personal and profound ways. “In the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest” (Doctrine and Covenants 84:20). When we worthily receive ordinances such as baptism, confirmation, the sacrament, and temple ordinances, we are not just participating in religious rituals—we are unlocking divine blessings and protection that come directly from heaven.

In temple ordinances, we make further covenants to sacrifice, obey God’s laws, live the gospel and doctrine of Christ, be morally clean, and consecrate ourselves to His work.

In the dedicatory prayer for the Kirtland Temple, the Prophet Joseph Smith asked that all who would enter the temple “may grow up in thee, and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost; and be organized according to thy laws, and be prepared to obtain every needful thing” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:14–15). This promise of growth, fullness, and preparation for eternal life is available to all who walk the covenant path.

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles summed up these blessings associated with ordinances and covenants in several aspects of our lives: “By making and keeping temple covenants, we learn more about the Lord’s purposes and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost. We receive direction for our lives. We mature in our discipleship so that we do not remain perpetual, unknowing children. Rather, we live with an eternal perspective and are more motivated to serve God and others. We receive increased capacity to fulfill our purposes in mortality.”

In a recent general conference address, President Russell M. Nelson extended an invitation with a promise: “To each of you who has made . . . covenants, I plead with you to seek—prayerfully and consistently—to understand . . . covenants and ordinances. Spiritual doors will open. You will learn how to part the veil between heaven and earth, how to ask for God’s angels to attend you, and how better to receive direction from heaven. Your diligent efforts to do so will reinforce and strengthen your spiritual foundation.”