What Is the Law of Chastity?

My Come Follow Me studies for this week took me to Doctrine and Covenants 60-63 in a lesson titled “I Am with the Faithful Always.” The lesson was introduced by the following paragraphs.

In early August 1831, Joseph Smith and other elders of the Church were preparing to return to Kirtland after a short visit to the “land of Zion” (Doctrine and Covenants 59:3). The Lord had wanted them to preach the gospel during their trip (see Doctrine nd Covenants 52:10), and some of them did so diligently. But others were hesitant. “They hide the talent which I have given unto them,” the Lord said, “because of the fear of man” (Doctrine and Covenants 60:2). Many of us know how these elders felt. Even though we love the gospel, fear and doubt might keep us from sharing it. But the Lord is merciful. He “knoweth the weakness of man and how to succor [us]” (Doctrine and Covenants 62:1). Scattered throughout these revelations to early missionaries are reassurances that can help us overcome our fears and shortcomings: “I am able to make you holy.” “All flesh is in mine hand.” “I am with the faithful always.” And “He that is faithful and endureth shall overcome the world.” (Doctrine and Covenants 60:7; 61:6; 62:9; 63:47.) 

The scripture block contains several principles, including (1) I can share my love and testimony of Jesus Christ (Doctrine and Covenants 60; 62, (2) The scriptures teach of Jesus Christ (Doctrine and Covenants 60:2-4; 61:1-2, 20, 36-38; 62:1, 6), (3) My decisions should balance “judgment and the direction of the Spirit” (Doctrine and Covenants 62), (4) Signs come by faith and the will of God (Doctrine and Covenants 63:7-12), (5) I can be chaste in my thoughts and actions (Doctrine and Covenants 63:16), and (6) Sacred things should be treated with reverence (Doctrine and Covenants 63:58-64).

This essay will discuss principle #5 “I can be chaste in my thoughts and actions” (Doctrine and Covenants 63:16). We will first look at the applicable verse of scripture.

16 And verily I say unto you, as I have said before, he that looketh on a woman to lust after her, or if any shall commit adultery in their hearts, they shall not have the Spirit, but shall deny the faith and shall fear.

In the above quoted scripture, the Savior reaffirmed what He taught in the New Testament – that the law of chastity should govern not just our actions but also our thoughts (see Matthew 5:27-28). This verse tells us that we commit adultery in our heart if we lust after anyone. It also says that adultery causes us to lose the Spirit.

Many people think the Lord’s standards of chastity of thought and action are old-fashioned or even oppressive. It would be wonderful if all of God’s children lived the law of chastity. Even when we know the blessings of being chaste in our thoughts and actions, it is not always easy to live the law. In his general conference address titled “We Believe in Being Chaste,” Elder David A. Bednar gave the following counsel: 

The means by which mortal life is created is divinely appointed. “The first commandment … God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife” (Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 129). The commandment to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force today. Thus, marriage between a man and a woman is the authorized channel through which premortal spirits enter mortality. Complete sexual abstinence before marriage and total fidelity within marriage protect the sanctity of this sacred channel.

The power of procreation is spiritually significant. Misuse of this power subverts the purposes of the Father’s plan and of our mortal existence. Our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son are creators and have entrusted each of us with a portion of Their creative power. Specific guidelines for the proper use of the ability to create life are vital elements in the Father’s plan. How we feel about and use that supernal power will determine in large measure our happiness in mortality and our destiny in eternity….

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a single, undeviating standard of sexual morality: intimate relations are proper only between a man and a woman in the marriage relationship prescribed in God’s plan. Such relations are not merely a curiosity to be explored, an appetite to be satisfied, or a type of recreation or entertainment to be pursued selfishly. They are not a conquest to be achieved or simply an act to be performed. Rather, they are in mortality one of the ultimate expressions of our divine nature and potential and a way of strengthening emotional and spiritual bonds between husband and wife. We are agents blessed with moral agency and are defined by our divine heritage as children of God—and not by sexual behaviors, contemporary attitudes, or secular philosophies….

The doctrine I have described will seem to be archaic and outdated to many people in a world that increasingly mocks the sanctity of procreation and minimizes the worth of human life. But the Lord’s truth is not altered by fads, popularity, or public opinion polls. I promise that obedience to the law of chastity will increase our happiness in mortality and make possible our progress in eternity. Chastity and virtue are now, always have been, and always will be “most dear and precious above all things” (Moroni 9:9). I so testify in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen (Ensign or Liahona, May 2013, 41-44).