The Sacrament: Understanding the Covenants we Make During the Sacrament

The Sacrament

I. Willing to Take Upon Them the Name of Thy Son

Henry B. Eyring, “Be One,” Ensign, Sep. 2008

 “We promise to take His name upon us. That means we must see ourselves as His. We will put Him first in our lives. We will want what He wants rather than what the world teaches us to want.”  

Dallin H. Oaks, “Taking upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ,” Ensign, May 1985

“Our witness that we are willing to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ has several different meanings. Some of these meanings are obvious, and well within the understanding of our children.

·         When we become members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

·         Whenever we publicly proclaim our belief in him

·         When we do the work of his kingdom

Others are only evident to those who have searched the scriptures and pondered the wonders of eternal life.

·         [We witness] a willingness to take upon us the authority of Jesus Christ.

·         We witness our willingness to participate in the sacred ordinances of the temple.

·         We signify our commitment to do all that we can to achieve eternal life in the kingdom of our Father.

Elder Bednar, Act in Doctrine, p. 53

For those individuals who have received and are striving to honor baptismal and temple covenants, the third commandment suggests a particularly pointed implication: "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain." 

This commandment focuses upon much more than the use of inappropriate language. When we knowingly violate covenant conditions after having pledged our willingness to take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ, we literally are taking His name in vain.

II. Always Remember Him

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Ensign, Nov. 1995

 “Since that upper room experience on the eve of Gethsemane, children of the promise have been under covenant to remember Christ’s sacrifice in this newer, higher, more holy and personal way.  If remembering is the principal task before us, what might come to our memory when those plain and precious emblems are offered to us?”

1. His love and strength in the Grand Council of Heaven.  That he is the Creator of heaven and earth.
2. All that he did in his premortal life as Jehovah.  
3. The simple grandeur of his birth.
4. His teachings, His miracles and healings.
5. That “all things which are good cometh of Christ” (Moroni 7:24).
6. The unkind treatment, rejection, and injustice he endured.
7. That he descended below all things in order to rise above them.
8. That he made his sacrifices and endured his sorrows for each of us.

 Henry B. Eyring, “Be One,” Ensign, Sep. 2008

“Second, we promise always to remember Him. We do that every time we pray in His name, especially when we ask for His forgiveness, as we must do often, we remember Him.”   

Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “To Always Remember Him,”  Ensign, Apr. 2011

“I wish to elaborate on three aspects of what it means to “always remember him”:

·         First, seeking to know and follow His will:  The blessing on the bread commits us to “always remember him and keep his commandments.”  It would also be appropriate to read this covenant as “always remember Him to keep His commandments.” This is how He always remembered the Father.  We can begin by stripping everything out of our lives & then putting it back together in priority order with the Savior at the center.

·         Second, recognizing & accepting our obligation to answer to Christ for every thought, word, & action:  Always remembering Him means we always remember that nothing is hidden from Him. There is no part of our lives, whether act, word, or even thought, that can be kept from the knowledge of the Father & the Son.

·         Third, living with faith and without fear so that we can always look to the Savior for the help we need:  The Savior reminds us that through His Atonement He has been given all power in heaven and earth and has both the capacity and will to protect us and minister to our needs. We need only be faithful, and we can rely implicitly on Him.”                                  

III. Keep His Commandments Which He Has Given Them

Henry B. Eyring, “Be One,” Ensign, Sep. 2008

Third, we promise as we take the sacrament to keep His commandments, all of them. President J. Reuben Clark warned us against being selective in what we will obey. “The Lord has given us nothing that is useless or unnecessary. He has filled the Scriptures with the things which we should do in order that we may gain salvation. When we partake of the Sacrament we covenant to obey and keep his commandments. There are no exceptions. There are no distinctions, no differences.”

IV. That They May Always Have His Spirit to be With Them

Bruce R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith (1985), 253

Men ought--above all things in this world--to seek for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  There is nothing as important as having the companionship of the Holy Ghost. There is no price too high, no struggle too severe, no sacrifice too great, if out of it all we receive and enjoy the gift of the Holy Ghost.     --Bruce R. McConkie

Elder David A. Bednar, “That We May Always Have His Spirit to be With Us,” Ensign, May 2006

The Spirit of the Lord can be our guide and will bless us with direction, instruction, and spiritual protection during our mortal journey. We invite the Holy Ghost into our lives through meaningful personal and family prayer, feasting upon the words of Christ, diligent and exacting obedience, faithfulness and honoring of covenants, and through virtue, humility, and service. And we steadfastly should avoid things that are immodest, coarse, crude, sinful, or evil that cause us to withdraw ourselves from the Holy Ghost.

V. The Sacrament- An Opportunity for Spiritual Growth

David B. Haight, “The Sacrament,” Ensign, May 1983

 “Associated with the partaking of the sacrament are principles that are fundamental to man’s advancement and exaltation in the kingdom of God and the shaping of one’s spiritual character. We should reflect in our own weekday conduct the spiritual renewal and commitments made on Sunday. We may fail to recognize the deep spiritual significance this ordinance offers to each of us personally. Is it possible that a casual attitude on our part of routine formality of this sacred occasion might deaden our opportunity for spiritual growth?”

David O. McKay, Conference Report, Apr. 1946

"Meditation is one of the most secret, most sacred doors through which we pass into the presence of the Lord.  I believe the short period of administering the sacrament is one of the best opportunities we have for such meditation.  If we partake of it mechanically, we are not honest, or let us say, we are permitting our thoughts to be distracted from a very sacred ordinance."

Howard W. Hunter, Ensign, May 1977 

“To make a covenant with the Lord to always keep His commandments is a serious obligation, and to renew that covenant by partaking of the sacrament is equally serious. The solemn moments of thought while the sacrament is being served have great significance. They are moments of self-examination, introspection, self-discernment—a time to reflect and to resolve.”   

VI. A Broken Heart & Contrite Spirit

3 Nephi 9:19-20

“And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings.  And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.”

D. Todd Christofferson, “When Thou Art Converted,” Ensign, May 2004

“In ancient times when people wanted to seek the Lord’s blessings, they often brought a gift. For example, when they went to the temple, they brought a sacrifice to place on the altar. The gift or sacrifice He will accept now is “a broken heart and a contrite spirit.”  As you seek the blessing of conversion, you can offer the Lord the gift of your broken, or repentant, heart and your contrite, or obedient, spirit. In reality, it is the gift of yourself—what you are and what you are becoming.

Is there something in you or in your life that is impure or unworthy? When you get rid of it, that is a gift to the Savior. Is there a good habit or quality that is lacking in your life? When you adopt it and make it part of your character, you are giving a gift to the Lord.”   

President Ezra Taft Benson, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Oct. 1989

“Godly sorrow … is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering. Our sins caused him to bleed at every pore. This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having ‘a broken heart and a contrite spirit.’”