How Mormons Get Covenants Wrong

This episode explores the true biblical meaning of covenant—and how it offers freedom through Christ, not the pressure of performance found in Mormonism.

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Introduction

Mormons often speak of “making covenants” and “keeping covenants” as central to their spiritual journey, particularly in temples.

Common Mormon Language Around “Keeping Covenants”:

“Keeping my covenants helps me stay on the covenant path.”

• This is one of the most common phrases in modern LDS teaching.
• The “covenant path” is seen as the lifelong journey of obedience to temple covenants, commandments, and church requirements to eventually achieve exaltation (godhood).

“I need to stay worthy to enter the temple by keeping my covenants.”

• Mormons must follow strict behavioral guidelines to maintain a temple recommend—this includes tithing, the Word of Wisdom, chastity, loyalty to church leaders, and more.
• Failure to keep these standards can result in losing temple privileges.

“We renew our covenants every Sunday by taking the sacrament.”

• Mormons are taught that by taking the sacrament (communion), they are renewing the covenants they made at baptism—and by extension, all temple covenants as well.
• This creates a weekly cycle of striving to stay “worthy” of God’s blessings.

“By keeping my covenants, I can qualify for eternal life and exaltation.”

• In LDS belief, eternal life (not just salvation but godhood in the highest heaven) is conditional on faithful covenant-keeping.
• This includes baptism, priesthood ordination (for men), temple endowment, celestial marriage, and ongoing obedience.

“I want to be a covenant-keeper so I can be with my family forever.”

• LDS doctrine teaches that only those who keep all covenants faithfully to the end will achieve celestial marriage and eternal family unity.

• But what is the true biblical meaning of covenant? And how does it expose the flaws in Mormon doctrine?
• This is a vital conversation for anyone transitioning from Mormonism to true biblical Christianity.

1. The Biblical Idea of Covenant

• In Scripture, a covenant is a divinely initiated relationship where God sets the terms and fulfills the promises.

Key biblical covenants:

• Noahic Covenant (Genesis 9)
• Abrahamic Covenant (Genesis 12, 15, 17)
• Mosaic Covenant (Exodus 19-24)
• Davidic Covenant (2 Samuel 7)
• New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Luke 22:20)

2. The Power of Genesis 15: God’s One-Sided Covenant

In Genesis 15, God formalizes His covenant with Abraham:

• God promises land, descendants, and blessing.
• In the ancient Near East, covenant ceremonies involved both parties walking through slain animal pieces, symbolizing: “If I break this covenant, may I die.”

But in Genesis 15:

• Abraham falls asleep (Genesis 15:12).
• God alone, symbolized by a smoking firepot and flaming torch, walks through the pieces (Genesis 15:17).

This signifies:

• God Himself takes full responsibility for fulfilling the covenant.
• It’s unconditional—Abraham does nothing to “keep” it.
• A precursor to salvation by grace through Christ, not by human works or performance (Romans 4:3-5).

3. The LDS View of Covenants vs. the Bible

Mormonism’s view:

• Covenants are a series of promises we make to God: baptism, temple, marriage, obedience to laws and ordinances (2 Nephi 31:5-21; D&C 132).
• D&C 82: 8 And again, I say unto you, I give unto you a new commandment, that you may understand my will concerning you; 9 Or, in other words, I give unto you directions how you may act before me, that it may turn to you for your salvation. 10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.
• D&C 132: 4 For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory. 
• 7 And verily I say unto you, that the conditions of this law are these: All covenants, contracts, bonds, obligations, oaths, vows, performances, connections, associations, or expectations, that are not made and entered into and sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, of him who is anointed…whom I have appointed on the earth to hold this power (and 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), are of no efficacy, virtue, or force…
• Keeping covenants = earning exaltation.
• 19 And again, verily I say unto you, if a man marry a wife by my word, which is my law, and by the new and everlasting covenant, and it is sealed unto them… by him who is anointed… they shall pass by the angels, and the gods, which are set there, to their exaltation….
• 20 Then shall they be gods, because they have no end; therefore shall they be from everlasting to everlasting…

What is the Bible’s “New and Everlasting Covenant”?

1. The New Covenant in the Bible:

The New Covenant is the central promise of God fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

It was foretold in the Old Testament:

• Jeremiah 31:31-34 — “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant… I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts.”
• It promises:
• Forgiveness of sins
• New hearts empowered by God’s Spirit
• Intimate relationship with God

Jesus inaugurates this covenant:

• Luke 22:20 — “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood.”

The New Covenant is:

• Unconditional for the believer—secured by Christ alone.
• Internal not external—written on the heart, not on stone tablets.
• Everlasting—eternal life with God that can never be lost (Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 13:20).

2. The “Everlasting Covenant” Language in the Bible:

The Bible often refers to God’s covenants as everlasting because:

• God Himself is faithful and unchanging.
• The New Covenant through Jesus is the final and eternal covenant—it will never be replaced or superseded.

Examples:

• Hebrews 13:20 — Jesus is the “great Shepherd of the sheep by the blood of the everlasting covenant.”
• Isaiah 55:3 — Speaks of an “everlasting covenant” linked to the faithful love promised to David.

3. How This Contradicts Mormonism’s “New and Everlasting Covenant”:

Mormon Doctrine (Doctrine & Covenants 132:6-7, 19-20):

• The “new and everlasting covenant” is identified primarily as celestial marriage—the requirement to be married in an LDS temple for exaltation (godhood).
• In LDS teaching, it is conditional: you must keep your covenants, be sealed in the temple, and live righteously to achieve the highest heaven.

The Bible’s teaching:

• The true “everlasting covenant” is Jesus Himself and His finished work—not marriage, temple rites, or human performance.
• Eternal life is a gift of grace (Ephesians 2:8-9), not a reward for keeping temple covenants.

4. The Land, the Covenant, and Lehi’s Departure

In the Old Testament, the covenant with Israel is inseparable from the land of Israel (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).

The Messiah was to come through the line of David, in the land of Israel, as fulfillment of God’s unbroken promises.

The Book of Mormon claims Lehi’s family was called to a new promised land in the Americas (1 Nephi 2:2).

Theological problem:

• This contradicts God’s own covenantal pattern.
• God does not create separate covenant peoples and lands—the covenant is fulfilled in Christ in Israel (Galatians 3:16).
• The New Covenant extends the blessings of Israel to all nations, not to a splinter group in the Americas.

5. The True New Covenant: Secured by Christ Alone

Jesus declared: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood” (Luke 22:20).

The New Covenant:

• Secured solely by Christ—not by our works (Hebrews 8:6-13).
• Brings forgiveness, transformation, and eternal life.
• The Genesis 15 principle is fulfilled: God does it all—we simply receive it by faith (Romans 4:16).

6. For Those Coming Out of Mormonism

Coming to grips with grace-based covenant means:

• No more temple worthiness interviews to prove yourself.
• No more fearing failure to keep covenants.
• Resting in the finished work of Jesus—God’s covenant keeper (Hebrews 10:14).

Verses to cling to:

• Romans 8:1—No condemnation for those in Christ.
• John 19:30—“It is finished.”