THE BLACKS AND THE PRIESTHOOD, Part 1 of Chapter 13 of The Church and The Gospel

THE BLACKS AND THE PRIESTHOOD, Part 1 of Chapter 13 of The Church and The Gospel 

Pages 198 to 200

The Pre-Existence

An individual’s right to bear the Priesthood in this life was determined by experiences that occurred in the Pre-Existence. According to Joseph Smith:

Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before this world was. I suppose I was ordained to this very office in that Grand Council. (TPJS, p. 365)

God told Abraham that he was among those that were appointed to be rulers and that he was “chosen before thou wast born.” (Abraham 3:23) Other spirits were given certain appointments, gifts and callings, but not necessarily pertaining to the Priesthood, as they did not qualify there, neither do they qualify here. And even among those who were given that responsibility, only a relatively few prove faithful and truly magnify that Priesthood.