The word priesthood can sound like a title or rank. Scripture presents something more serious. Authority belongs to Jesus Christ, and those who receive it are accountable to Him for what they do with it.
That is why priesthood matters to us. It gives sacred work an order, but it also places a heavier responsibility on the person who has been called to serve.
Priesthood Begins With Jesus Christ
No school, church board, congregation, or individual can create divine authority. The source is Christ. The Church can recognize a calling and ordain a man, but it cannot manufacture what belongs to God.
We hold the Holy Priesthood after the Order of the Son of God today because we believe the Lord has restored that authority to His Church.
No One Gives This Authority to Himself
A sincere desire to serve is good, but desire alone is not ordination. Scripture treats priesthood as something received through calling and through the order God has already established.
That protects the Church from becoming a collection of self-appointed teachers whose only authority is confidence in themselves.
“No man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.”
Hebrews 5:4 ↗
Why Authority Matters in the Ordinances
Baptism, confirmation, ordination, blessing, and other sacred ordinances belong to Jesus Christ. They are not private religious performances that gain meaning only because the people involved are sincere.
Authority matters because covenant matters. When the Lord gives an ordinance, He also has the right to establish how it is administered and by whom.
Power Is Not the Point
Priesthood gives real responsibility, but it does not give a man ownership of another person’s conscience. A priest is a steward, not a religious owner.
If authority makes someone more controlling, more proud, or more interested in being important, something has gone wrong. Christ gave authority for the good of His people.
The Measure Is Service
Jesus used authority to teach, bless, correct, heal, gather, and serve. The man who carries priesthood should become more useful to others, not more impressed with himself.
Ordination is therefore not a reward. It is a call to bear more responsibility before God and to become more disciplined in the way we treat His people.
“Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister.”
Matthew 20:26 ↗
A Holy Calling Requires a Faithful Life
The Book of Commandments ties priesthood power directly to humility, diligence, and faithfulness. That connection matters. Sacred authority cannot be separated from the character of the person entrusted with it.
We will never serve perfectly, but a priest should be willing to be corrected, to repent, to work, to keep covenant, and to live under the same word he teaches to everyone else.
“This power and authority have been given by me, to the Holy Priesthood, contingent upon their humility, diligence, and faithfulness which they offer before me.”
The Book of Commandments 14:5 ↗
Why We Believe the Holy Priesthood Is Here Today
We do not speak about priesthood only as something that belonged to apostles long ago. We believe the Lord has restored the Holy Priesthood in this generation.
Through that authority we teach, baptize, ordain, bless, govern, and serve. The claim is serious, which means the responsibility to live worthy of it is serious too.