Power and Gift of Agency

The Power and Gift of Agency
April 6, 2008

As spirit children of God, we engaged in a bitter war while in the Pre-mortal existence. During that battle, we defended the Word with the word. Our Leader was Jehovah, who stood on the right hand of His Father and was designated as the only conduit back to the presence of the Father.

We were taught that whenever we heard, saw, or felt the presence of Jehovah, it was the same as though it came from our Father. This doctrine is called the “Divine Investiture of Authority.” Jehovah became the singular Agent of His Father. He has total authority to act in behalf of the Father with the express purpose of bringing all souls back His presence.

By definition an agency relationship results when one party consents to another party’s acting on behalf of the first party’s. Since the authorized acts of the agent bind the principle, we need to understand when an agent ceases to be an agent.

Let’s use a business metaphor in the Life Insurance industry as an example. If Ralph were a licensed agent for Gig Harbor Life Insurance Company of the Puget Sound, he would be contracted with the company to act as a representative selling Life Insurance to all who are qualified and want the contract.

If Ralph ever misrepresents the company’s policies by deceit or malfeasance he violates his contract. He would either be punished and his powers reduced or his contract would be terminated and the power to bind the company would cease to exist. His freedom of choice to be truthful or dishonest remains, but his agency is either reduced through disciplinary action or completely severed through termination.

In a spiritual sense consider the following passage as found in Hebrews 6:13-18:
“For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself…(Jehovah swore by Himself, that he would bless and multiply all within the Abrahamic Covenant and that Abraham’s Calling and Election would be made sure.)

For men verily swear by the greater (men swear by a greater power—God): and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.

Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise (all who will partake in the Abrahamic Covenant) the immutability (unchangeable) of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath (The Lord makes the oath and we make the covenant, Section 84)

That by two immutable things, (that Abraham’s Calling and Election was sure and that all who join in the Abrahamic Covenant have the same opportunity) In which it was impossible for God to lie, (this act would remove Jehovah as an agent to His Father and he would then cease to be God.) [Now the work of justice could not be destroyed; if so, God would cease to be God. Alma 42:25]

Jesus Christ is an Agent for the Father just as we are agents for Jesus. When Adam defeated the armies of Lucifer, we chose sides, which put us in a position to be agents unto the Lord Jesus Christ. Our choice was the Father’s plan or Lucifer’s plan, and we made that choice. Thus ended our freedom of choice as far as mortality is concerned. From that point on we became agents to act in behalf of our covenant made before we were born.

The American College Dictionary defines agent as:
1. A person acting on behalf of another
2. One who or that which acts or has the power to act: a moral agent

Jesus Christ is the Only Begotten from the beginning and therefore acts as a perfect agent for the Father. His does not possess the capacity to violate His agency because He is God. Agency, as illustrated by the Savior is the “Power to Act Righteously.” How then does agency operate in our lives?

Through the event called birth, each of us becomes an agent to Christ. It is through Him and Him alone that we may return to the presence of the Father. Therefore, He gives us agency or power to act righteously, called the Light of Christ. It is a memory chip embedded in our subconscious that prompts us to act righteously. We are indeed moral agents as we interact with our brothers and sisters of all kinds.

If through our actions we sear our conscience, we, in effect, severe our contract as moral agents. We no longer have the capacity to act righteously and nothing we do or say is binding.

When a person arrives at the age of 8 and is baptized by one who has authority, he takes on another level of agency, for the terms of the baptismal contract carry weightier matters and the Holy Ghost acts as a greater tool for righteousness.

When the agent acts outside his contract, the Holy Ghost withdraws until the agent reverses course, repents and positions his direction back on the path toward God. The withdrawal of the Holy Ghost is akin to the Gig Harbor Life Insurance agent being punished and losing his power to write life insurance until he can gain the confidence of the company.

In a spiritual sense, the withdrawal of the Holy Ghost is a function of sin. Repentance is a reversal of course and forsaking the sin. The spirit always returns upon righteous actions and validates the repentance process to the agent.

As time progresses and the agent lives up to all the contracts and obligations associated with the original terms of engagement, the Priesthood of God is bestowed on him. He is now empowered with a literal power to bind others as well as himself through his agency.

The spirit ratifies his righteous acts and his ordinances are recorded in the Lamb’s Book of Life for display at the Final Judgment.

Until power or authority is bestowed, he only has power to bind himself. But once the priesthood of God is given, he can give it away and therefore, bind others and their good works to Jehovah through actions such as:
1. Baptism
2. Confirmation
3. Ordination
4. Administering
5. Endowing and
6. Sealing

Therefore, freedom of choice is the precursor to agency. Freedom of choice occurs on a daily basis and sets the tone for our agency. The better the choices the greater the agency. The lesser the choices, the lesser the agency.

Agency’s definition as the power to act righteously means that whenever someone chooses a righteous act, they empower themselves with greater agency. Christ, Who has the greatest agency of all set the pattern. His power over death is a by-product of righteous choices, but it’s His agency that enables Him to serve us through the Atonement.