The Family and Church Organization

In his last general conference address Elder Christofferson spoke about the purpose of Christ’s Church. He made this statement about early Old Testament times: “Beginning with Adam, the gospel of Jesus Christ was preached, and the essential ordinances of salvation, such as baptism, were administered through a family-based priesthood order.  As societies grew more complex than simply extended families, God also called other prophets, messengers, and teachers” (Why the Church).  This statement shows the fact that the organization of a Church has changed throughout the dispensations.  

I think we are accustomed to stress the fact that the basic structure of the Church today is the same as it was in Christ’s day: “We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth” (Articles of Faith 1:6).  This of course is an important part of our doctrine as we emphasize a restoration of what previously existed.  But there wasn’t always the exact same structure, and we don’t need to worry about imposing everything as we see it today on earlier dispensations.  The Nephite church did not have all the same offices as we do today; in Moses’ time they did not have 12 apostles; in Abraham’s day there wasn’t even such a thing as a church.  And that’s okay.  The fundamentals of the gospel haven’t changed—salvation through faith in Jesus Christ has always been taught—but the mechanisms of teaching God’s word to His children has changed based on what was needed in each dispensation.  We don’t need to worry that some things were done differently, even earlier in our same dispensation; as the phrase goes, “The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.” 

What struck me from Elder Christofferson’s statement was his comment about it being a “family-based priesthood order”.  The need for a church and more formal organization came only as “societies grew more complex than simply extended families.”  That was how it began with Adam, and that’s what’s been consistent throughout the centuries.  No matter what organizational changes might take place in the administration of the gospel, the family has been and always will be at the core.  The Church is the scaffolding; the family is what’s at the heart.  I think we get a small glimpse of how important the family was to the early Patriarchs in the encounter of Jacob with Laban’s family.  Laban was his “mother’s brother” and Jacob had never met the family of Laban.  The encounter was so joyous a reunion for these strangers that Laban “ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house.  And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh” (Genesis 29:14).  Even though they did not really even know each other, these family members were overjoyed to be united.  In the days of the Patriarchs the family was at the core of everything, including the teaching of the gospel.  And though the organization of the church today might be totally different, the core remains unchanged: families centered in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Elder Christofferson said it best: “We must remember that in the beginning, the Church was the family….  The point of gospel teaching and priesthood ordinances administered by the Church is that families may qualify for eternal life.”