Section 79
Overview
Doctrine and Covenants Section 79 is a short, four-verse revelation dictated by Joseph Smith in March 1832 at Hiram, Ohio. The text is framed as the direct, verbatim words of Jesus Christ addressed to Jared Carter, calling him to serve a proselytizing mission to the 'eastern countries' (the eastern United States). The revelation emphasizes the necessity of priesthood authority, instructing Carter to preach 'in the power of the ordination wherewith he has been ordained.' It promises the active guidance of the 'Comforter' (the Holy Ghost) to direct his travels and teach him truth. A critical theological and psychological component of this text is the conditional promise of missionary success: 'inasmuch as he is faithful, I will crown him again with sheaves.' This establishes a direct correlation between a missionary's personal righteousness and their tangible success in gathering converts. The text concludes with pastoral encouragement to rejoice and fear not. For Evangelical Christians, this text presents immediate friction points regarding the closure of the canon (Sola Scriptura), the nature of the 'everlasting gospel,' and the burden of performance-based spiritual outcomes.
Key Figures
- Jesus Christ: The claimed first-person author and speaker of this revelation, asserting divine authority over Jared Carter's life and calling.
- Jared Carter: An early Latter-day Saint convert and priesthood holder who is the specific recipient of this missionary call and the conditional promises contained therein.
- The Comforter: The Holy Ghost, promised as a divine guide to direct Carter's physical travels and teach him truth.
Doctrines Analyzed
Key theological claims identified in this text:
Ongoing Prophetic Revelation (Open Canon)
Assertion
Jesus Christ continues to give direct, verbatim, authoritative revelation to modern individuals through a prophet.
Evidence from Text
Verily I say unto you, that it is my will... saith your Lord, even Jesus Christ. Amen. (D&C 79:1, 4)
Evangelical Comparison
This text is presented not as an inspired sermon or a pastoral letter, but as the very words of Jesus Christ dictated in the first person. This strikes at the heart of the Evangelical doctrine of Sola Scriptura. Evangelicals believe that God's special revelation to humanity was completed with the apostolic era and the closing of the New Testament canon (Jude 1:3, Hebrews 1:1-2, Revelation 22:18-19). The Bible is viewed as the sole, infallible rule of faith and practice. D&C 79, by claiming to be the voice of the Lord, asserts an open canon where new scriptures are continually generated, placing the words of Joseph Smith on the same authoritative level as the words of the biblical prophets and apostles.
Necessity of Priesthood Ordination for Ministry
Assertion
Preaching the gospel must be done in the power of a specific, formal ordination.
Evidence from Text
...go again into the eastern countries... in the power of the ordination wherewith he has been ordained... (D&C 79:1)
Evangelical Comparison
The text commands Carter to preach 'in the power of the ordination wherewith he has been ordained.' In LDS theology, this refers to the Melchizedek Priesthood, which they believe was exclusively restored through Joseph Smith. Without this specific priesthood, one cannot validly act in God's name. Evangelical Christianity, drawing on 1 Peter 2:9 and Revelation 1:6, teaches the 'Priesthood of All Believers.' While Evangelicals ordain pastors for order and specific church offices, the authority to preach the gospel, share 'glad tidings,' and serve God is inherent in every born-again believer by virtue of their union with Christ, not through a hierarchical chain of exclusive apostolic succession.
Conditional Spiritual Harvest
Assertion
A missionary's success in gathering converts ('sheaves') is directly contingent upon their personal faithfulness.
Evidence from Text
And inasmuch as he is faithful, I will crown him again with sheaves. (D&C 79:3)
Evangelical Comparison
The phrase 'inasmuch as he is faithful' establishes a conditional covenant: Carter's faithfulness is the prerequisite for God granting him 'sheaves' (converts). While Evangelicals believe God uses faithful messengers, the ultimate success of the gospel—the regeneration of hearts—is entirely a sovereign work of the Holy Spirit. As the Apostle Paul states in 1 Corinthians 3:6-7, 'I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.' Tying the salvation of others (the harvest) to the behavioral faithfulness of the missionary creates a theology where human works mediate divine grace.
Comparative Analysis
Theological Gap (Summary)
The primary gaps lie in the nature of authority (open canon vs. Sola Scriptura) and the mechanics of ministry (exclusive LDS priesthood vs. universal priesthood, and performance-based outcomes vs. sovereign grace).
Theological Gap (Explained)
The theological divergence in D&C 79 centers on authority and the economy of grace. First, the text operates on the premise of an open canon, claiming to be the literal, ongoing voice of Jesus Christ. This contradicts the Evangelical pillar of Sola Scriptura, which maintains that God's special, normative revelation concluded with the Apostolic age (Hebrews 1:1-2). Second, the text insists on the necessity of a specific 'ordination' to preach the gospel, reflecting the LDS doctrine of restored Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods. Evangelicals reject this, holding to the universal priesthood of all believers (1 Peter 2:9), where every Christian is authorized and commanded to share the gospel by virtue of their salvation, without need for a mediating, hierarchical priesthood. Finally, the conditional promise ('inasmuch as he is faithful, I will crown him... with sheaves') introduces a performance-based metric for spiritual fruitfulness. While Evangelicals affirm the importance of obedience, they maintain that the regeneration of souls is entirely a sovereign act of God (1 Corinthians 3:6-7), not a reward dispensed based on the evangelist's behavioral merit.
For All Ages
Imagine you have a complete instruction manual for building a Lego castle. Evangelical Christians believe the Bible is that complete manual—God gave us everything we need, and the author said, 'The end.' Mormonism believes God is still writing new pages to the manual today through modern prophets. This text is one of those 'new pages.' Also, this text tells a missionary that if he is good enough, God will reward him with new members. Evangelicals believe that while we should share our faith, only God can change someone's heart, and our success isn't based on how perfectly we perform, but on how perfect Jesus is.
Friction Points
Sola Scriptura
The text claims to be new, direct, verbatim revelation from Jesus Christ, adding to the biblical canon.
Universal Priesthood
The text implies that preaching the gospel requires a specific, formal ordination (LDS priesthood), denying the inherent authority of all believers to share the gospel.
Sola Gratia / Sovereignty of God
The text makes the salvation of others ('sheaves') conditional upon the personal faithfulness of the missionary, rather than the sovereign grace of God.
Semantic Warnings
Terms that have different meanings between traditions:
"Everlasting Gospel"
In This Text
The fullness of the LDS message, which includes faith and repentance, but also necessitates restored priesthood authority, modern prophets, and eventually temple ordinances.
In Evangelicalism
The good news of Christ's incarnation, sinless life, substitutionary death, and resurrection, which provides justification by grace alone through faith alone (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Ephesians 2:8-9).
"Ordination"
In This Text
The conferring of specific, exclusive priesthood authority (Aaronic or Melchizedek) through the laying on of hands by one who already holds that specific LDS authority.
In Evangelicalism
The setting apart of a believer for a specific pastoral or ministerial role by the local church, recognizing the internal call of the Holy Spirit, but not conferring a mediatorial or exclusive power to act in God's name.
Soteriology (Salvation)
Salvation Defined: While not explicitly defining salvation, the preaching of the 'everlasting gospel' in the LDS context refers to bringing people into the LDS church to receive saving ordinances.
How Attained: Attained by hearing the 'glad tidings' from an authorized priesthood holder and responding with faith, repentance, and LDS baptism.
Basis of Assurance: Assurance for the missionary is based on their personal 'faithfulness' which results in the reward of 'sheaves' and the presence of the Comforter.
Comparison to Sola Fide: The text does not address justification directly, but the framework of requiring a specifically ordained priesthood holder to deliver the 'everlasting gospel' adds an institutional and works-based requirement to the reception of grace, contrasting with justification by faith alone (Romans 5:1).
Mandates & Requirements
Explicit Commands
- Go again into the eastern countries
- Go from place to place, and from city to city
- Proclaim glad tidings of great joy, even the everlasting gospel
- Let your heart be glad
- Fear not
Implicit Obligations
- Maintain personal faithfulness and obedience to ensure a successful harvest of souls
- Rely on and follow the promptings of the Comforter for geographical and spiritual direction
- Exercise the authority of the specific priesthood ordination received
Ritual Requirements
- Operate under the authority of formal LDS priesthood ordination (implied by 'power of the ordination')
Evangelism Toolkit
Practical tools for engagement and dialogue:
Discovery Questions
Open-ended questions to promote reflection:
- In verse 3, the Lord says 'inasmuch as he is faithful, I will crown him again with sheaves.' Have you ever felt the pressure that if you weren't perfectly faithful, someone else might not hear the gospel?
- How do you distinguish between your own thoughts and the voice of the Comforter mentioned in verse 2?
- When the text mentions the 'everlasting gospel,' what are the core components of that gospel to you? How does that compare to Paul's summary of the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4?
Redemptive Analogies
Bridges from this text to the Gospel:
The desire for the Comforter's guidance
Latter-day Saints deeply desire the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Evangelicals can bridge this by sharing how the Holy Spirit illuminates the completed Word of God, providing objective, unchanging truth that anchors our souls, rather than relying on shifting subjective feelings.
Glad tidings of great joy
Both traditions want to share good news. Evangelicals can pivot the conversation to *why* the biblical gospel is such 'great joy'—because it is a finished work. We don't have to earn our exaltation; Christ earned it for us.
Spiritual Weight
Burdens this text places on adherents:
The phrase 'inasmuch as he is faithful, I will crown him again with sheaves' creates a direct, causal link between a missionary's personal righteousness and their success in baptizing converts. If a missionary works hard but sees no converts, this theology strongly implies it is because they were not 'faithful' enough. This places a crushing psychological burden on the individual, leading to intense guilt, scrupulosity, and the false belief that they are responsible for the eternal destiny of others due to their own minor infractions.
Relying on ongoing, subjective revelation (the Comforter teaching 'the way whither he shall go') without the anchor of a closed, sufficient biblical canon can lead to spiritual anxiety. Believers may constantly second-guess whether a thought was from the Spirit, from themselves, or from the adversary, leading to decision paralysis.