Why So Many Members Are Falling For Satan’s Counterfeits of the United Order

A few weeks ago, I was grilling with one of my best friends at BYU and talking about the gospel and Satan’s counterfeits of the United Order when he said, “I am an awful endowed member.” Somewhat confused, as He was keeping the commandments, served a mission, and was trying to do the right thing from all that I could see, I asked him to explain. His response came to embody what I believe is a wider issue within the endowed members of the Church; he said, “I don’t know what the Law of Consecration is, or the United Order.” We spent the next 15 minutes breaking down the Law of Consecration, the United Order, their purposes, and Satan’s counterfeits. In the end, he exclaimed that he understood what it was finally. My goal is to teach the doctrine so clearly that it cannot be misunderstood.

When it comes to the Law of Consecration, most members of the Church only know that in the temple we covenant to obey it. But aside from that their understanding all but evaporates. Many members confuse the Law of Consecration with the United Order and think they are the same thing, others simply think we covenant to obey it in the temple, but we are not asked to live it at this time. Both these ideas are false. So, what is the Law of Consecration? What is the United Order? And what are Satan’s counterfeits?

Law of Consecration

The guide to the scriptures defines The Law of Consecration as a Law “To dedicate, to make holy, or to become righteous. The law of consecration is a divine principle whereby men and women voluntarily dedicate their time, talents, and material wealth to the establishment and building up of God’s kingdom.” Anyone who has been endowed is familiar with this verbiage as this is what we covenant in the temple endowment. But in plain English what is the Law of Consecration?

The Law of Consecration is where we covenant that we are willing to give the Lord everything we have and are if He asks for it. And the Lord does ask us for it. Tithing is where the Lord asks us to give Him 10% of what we covenanted to give Him already. When a missionary is called on a mission, they are being asked to consecrate their time, talents, and comforts. Therefore, when one understands the Law of Consecration, then one will finally understand why Church leaders talk about never turning down a calling, for when a Priesthood Leader acting within his role and keys, is acting on behalf of the Lord, then you realize every calling is merely the Lord extending an opportunity to keep your temple covenants and therefore the Law of Consecration.

When we actually think about it, when we consecrate our will to the Lord, we are truly willing to do whatever it takes to follow Him. We will give up our vices, we will serve our fellow men, we will repent and become born again. We will voluntarily use our agency to live the gospel. The Law of Consecration, particularly that it is done of our own free will and choice, aka agency, is the premise for all Celestial Law, and the chief principle that Heaven is built upon.

In talking to my friend at BYU, I told him the story of President Russell M. Nelson being called as a Stake President is the embodiment of the Law of Consecration. If you have not heard President Nelson’s amazing story click here for it.

The United Order.

Unlike the Law of Consecration, the commandment to live the United Order has been suspended by the Lord. But, the United Order, like all Celestial Laws, operates on the principles of the Law of Consecration. Namely, members of The Church voluntarily choosing to live the commandment. So, what exactly is the United Order? And how did it work?

The United Order is the order and manner by which Zion Communities have been established in times past and will be eventually in the future. Zion communities are places where there are no poor among the people, and everyone takes care of their neighbor. It is the goal and aspiration of all followers of Christ to live in a Zion community. Scriptural examples of Zion communities are the City of Enoch in the Book of Moses, The Apostles after the ascension of Christ, and the people in 4th Nephi.

In the United Order, members are living the fullness Gospel and of the Law of Consecration. In order to enter the United Order, members consecrate everything they own to the Church via the Bishop. The Bishop then gives each family stewardship over property according to their need and their wants. This stewardship was their property that they owned and had the deed to. If at any time they wanted to leave, members could leave the United Order and take their property with them. It was expected that they were to be wise stewards of their property and work to increase it and that any surplus above what they needed and wanted would be consecrated to the Church again.

Now three things that cannot be stressed enough about the United Order:

First, the United Order must be operating on the principle of agency.
Second, the United Order is grounded in personal property and stewardship.
Third, the United Order must be administered by Priesthood Keys.

These three things are so important that I am going to take a minute to dive into each one of them and explain it.

1st. The United Order must be operating on the principle of agency.

How we go about doing a lot of things in the gospel really does not matter. Does it matter if you pay tithing with cash or check? No. Does it matter if you walk to church or drive? No. Does it matter when you read your scriptures so long as you read them? Nope! In Doctrine and Covenants 27:2 the Lord even says that what we eat or drink for the sacrament does not really matter! But when it comes to the United Order, The Lord does care about how it is done. In Doctrine and Covenants 104:16 the Lord declared, “But it must needs be done in mine own way.”

The entire Plan of Salvation is based on the premise of agency. Men must choose for themselves what to do. The United Order as a Celestial Law is also based upon agency. Marion G. Romney taught that “The united order is implemented by the voluntary freewill actions of men, evidenced by a consecration of all their property to the Church of God. No force of any kind is ever involved.” No matter how promising the benefits might sound, force cannot replace agency. The United Order is no different, agency is vital to the entire program.

2nd. The United Order is grounded in personal property and stewardship.

In describing Zion communities, the scriptures talk of those who have consecrated everything to the Lord and describes Zion as having no poor nor rich, and that they had all things in common. People mistakenly believe that means all property was communal. This is not so! The Church’s Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual states:

The phrase “they had all things common” (Acts 4:32; see also Acts 2:44; 3 Nephi 26:19; 4 Nephi 1:3) is used to characterize those who lived the law of consecration in ancient times. Some have speculated that the term common suggests a type of communalism or “Christian Communism.” This interpretation is in error.

“Enrichment L: The Law of Consecration and Stewardship,” Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual
 (2002), 421–30

Marion G. Romney went further to clarify how having all things in common did not mean they were communal, in fact, he explains that the United Order is built upon the principles of private ownership of property:

To enter the united order, one consecrated all his possessions to the Church by a “covenant and a deed which [could not] be broken.” That is, he completely divested himself of all his property by conveying it to the Church.

Having done so, the consecrator received from the Church a stewardship by a like conveyance. This stewardship could be more or less than the original consecration, the object being to make “every man equal according to his family, according to his circumstances and his wants and needs.” (D&C 51:3.)

This procedure preserved in every man the right of private ownership and management of his property. Indeed, the fundamental principle of the system was the private ownership of property. Each man owned his portion, or inheritance, or stewardship, with an absolute title, which, at his option, he could alienate, keep and operate, or otherwise treat as his own. The Church did not own all of the property, and life under the united order was not, and never will be, a communal life, as the Prophet Joseph himself said.

Marion G. Romney, April 1977 (bold and italics added).

3rd. The United Order is administered by Priesthood Keys.

Now that we’ve addressed the fact that the United Order is the fullness of the Law of Consecration, agency is at its core, and in it personal property ownership is fundamental, the final piece that you must understand is that just like the Lord demanded United Order must be done in his way (See Doctrine and Covenants 104:16). The United Order must be administered through the Lord’s authorized servants, aka through Priesthood Keys. And Currently, the Lord’s lasts words on the matter were to the Prophet Joseph Smith in Doctrine and Covenants 105 when the Lord suspended the program until Zion shall be redeemed. IE, until the prophet receives word that we are to live it again, it is suspended, and no one has authority to administer the United Order. Any group attempting to live the ‘united order’ is doing so without priesthood authority. No matter how closely they follow the principles and precepts, it is not the United Order.

Preparing for the United Order.

Make no mistake about it. The United Order will be reinstated, once the people are ready. It is the Law by which the Lord has prescribed Zion to be built. So what can we do to prepare for Zion to be redeemed and the United Order to be reinstated? President Marion G. Romney gave the following counsel.

In the meantime, while we await the redemption of Zion and the earth and the establishment of the United Order, we as bearers of the priesthood should live strictly by the principles of the United Order insofar as they are embodied in present church practices, such as the fast offering, tithing, and the welfare activities. Through these practices we could as individuals, if we were of a mind to do so, implement in our own lives all the basic principles of the United Order… when the principles of tithing and the fast are properly observed and the Welfare Plan gets fully developed and wholly into operation, “we shall not be so very far from carrying out the great fundamentals of the United Order.”

President Marion G. Romney, Conference Report, April 196

Satan’s Counterfeits

Only once you understand the principles of the Law of Consecration and the United Order, can we finally address why so many members are falling for Satan’s counterfeits of the United Order. Satan is a master of deception and counterfeits. Just like in the grand council in Heaven where Satan sought to deceive us with a counterfeit of the Plan of Salvation, one based on force rather than agency, so too in this world he is trying to deceive the Saints with counterfeits of the United Order. These satanic counterfeits are dangerous, just like in Heaven when his counterfeit led astray a third of the heavenly host, in mortal life his counterfeits are once again leading the children of God astray. What are his counterfeits? Communism, Socialism, and Welfarism (welfare state).

Satan relies on ignorance or misunderstanding to push his counterfeits. Think about how many members are hesitant to talk about Consecration or the United Order. Satan rejoices when people fail to take the time to articulately and accurately teach the United Order as it sets the necessary confusion for him to succeed. We must teach the doctrine so clearly that it cannot be misunderstood. Only then will the carefully crafted counterfeits of Satan be exposed. Also, Satan knows that his counterfeits are so close to the gospel truth that people will defend them with religious zeal. A Latter-day Saint who can deceive will become a valuable zealot in advocating his counterfeits.

Returning to the doctrine, how similar is communism/socialism to the United Order? They are as similar as Satan’s plan was to Heavenly Father’s plan in heaven. Satan’s counterfeits promise to replicate the promised outcomes of the United Order, aka peace, unity, and equality. But in reality, just like Satan’s plan in heaven, they are based on flawed principles and can’t deliver the results. This is not my opinion. This is declared gospel truth. In closing, in the mouth of two or three witnesses, let the truth be established.

“United Order and communism are not synonymous. Communism is Satan’s counterfeit for the United Order. There is no mistake about this and those who go about telling us otherwise either do not know or have failed to understand or are wilfully misrepresenting.”

President J. Reuben Clark Jr Conference Report, October 1943

If, in the meantime [while we await the redemption of Zion and the earth and the establishment of the United Order], socialism takes over in America, it will have to be displaced, if need be, by the power of God, because the United Order can never function under socialism or “the welfare state,” for the good and sufficient reason that the principles upon which socialism and the United Order are conceived and operated are inimical.

President Marion G. Romney, Conference Report, April 1966 (bold and italics added)

“Satan argued that men given their freedom would not choose correctly therefore he would compel them to do right and save us all. Today Satan argues that men given their freedom do not choose wisely; therefore a so-called brilliant, benevolent few must establish the welfare government and force us into a greater socialistic society. We are assured of being led into the promised land as long as we let them put a golden ring in our nose. In the end we lose our freedom and the promised land also. No matter what you call it—communism, socialism, or the welfare state—our freedom is sacrificed. We believe the gospel is the greatest thing in the world; why then do we not force people to join the Church if they are not smart enough to see it on their own? Because this is Satan’s way not the Lord’s plan. The Lord uses persuasion and love.”

President Ezra Taft Benson, Conference Report, April 1965

False Political Isms [An official First Presidency address read in general Conference].

We again warn our people in America of the constantly increasing threat against our inspired Constitution and our free institutions set up under it. The same political tenets and philosophies that have brought war and terror in other parts of the world are at work amongst us in America. The proponents thereof are seeking to undermine our own form of government and to set up instead one of the forms of dictatorships now flourishing in other lands. These revolutionists are using a technique that is as old as the human race—a fervid but false solicitude for the unfortunate over whom they thus gain mastery and then enslave them.

They suit their approaches to the particular group they seek to deceive. Among the Latter-day Saints they speak of their philosophy and their plans under it as an ushering in of the United Order. Communism and all other similar isms bear no relationship whatever to the United Order. They are merely the clumsy counterfeits which Satan always devises of the gospel plan. Communism debases the individual and makes him the enslaved tool of the state to whom he must look for sustenance and religion; the United Order exalts the individual, leaves him his property, “according to his family, according to his circumstances and his wants and needs,” (D&C 51:3) and provides a system by which he helps care for his less fortunate brethren; the United Order leaves every man free to choose his own religion as his conscience directs. Communism destroys man’s God-given free agency; the United Order glorifies it. Latter-day Saints can not be true to their faith and lend aid, encouragement, or sympathy to any of these false phosphines. They will prove snares to their feet.

Heber J. Grant, J. Reuben Clark, Jr., David O. McKay, (Conference Report, April 1942, p. 90 bold and italics added)

For more quotes on Socialism and Communism, see this collection of over 50 quotes from more than 10 different Apostles and Prophets!