Lessons on the Temple
Lesson No. Twenty-Eight

Conferring the Sealing Power

Only one man holds and exercises all the priesthood keys – The Lord spoke of the sealing keys: “I have appointed unto my servant Joseph to hold this power in the last days, and there is never but one on the earth at a time on whom this power and the keys of this priesthood are conferred…” (D&C 132:7).

President Boyd K. Packer spoke about how closely guarded this authority is: “The sacred sealing power is with the Church now. Nothing is regarded with more sacred contemplation by those who know the significance of this authority. Nothing is more closely held. There are relatively few men who [hold] this sealing power upon the earth at any given time—in each temple are brethren who have been given the sealing power. No one can get it except from the prophet, seer, and revelator and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

Delegation of the sealing power on good and humble men – As the president of the Louisville Kentucky Temple I was authorized by to confer sealing authority on nine good and humble men.  On each occasion I was reminded of what President Gordon B. Hinckley said at the 1996 Seminar for New Temple Presidents:

“I never confer the sealing authority upon a man that I do not think of the wonder of it all.  Endowed with the keys of the holy priesthood and all of the power of that priesthood, we confer the only authority upon the face of the earth which reaches into the world beyond.

“No king, no president of a nation, no official of any entity in the world of which we are a part has any authority over matters beyond the grave.  Everyone is helpless before the reach of death.  But the humblest, good, and righteous high priest who has received the sealing authority may bind in the heavens that which is bound on earth.  There is nothing like it.”

It is a conferral of authority, not an ordination or a setting apart – Each time I have conferred the sealing authority I have received a letter signed by each member of the First Presidency authorizing me to do so and giving me the specific language that is to be used.  This letter also said that after I had conferred the sealing authority as instructed that I could then give a priesthood blessing.  (This is what President Thomas S. Monson did when he was authorized by President Gordon B. Hinckley to confer the sealing authority on me).  I was instructed to conclude the conferral of the sealing authority ‘in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”  After the conferral of the sealing authority, I was required to sign, date, and return a statement attesting that I had performed the conferral of sealing authority as I was directed. The brother who received the sealing authority was asked to sign and return a similar statement.

Testimony – If we understand how eternally important the sealing power is we can also understand why it is so closely guarded and controlled.  It is wonderful yet humbling to be one of the few men on the earth who holds the sealing power, and to be one of the very few men who have been authorized by the First Presidency to confer it on others.