April 2016 General Conference: Elder Gary E. Stevenson, "Where are the Keys and Authority of the Priesthood?"

Elder Stevenson illustrated the vital function of keys with a story about lost car keys.  He likened this to the restoration of Priesthood Keys through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Without this restoration, we would be locked out from the vehicle necessary to transport us on our journey home to loving heavenly parents. The performance of every ordinance of salvation comprising our covenant pathway back to the presence of our Father in Heaven requires appropriate governance through priesthood keys.

Ordinances that create a record in the Church require keys and cannot be done without authorization. Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught that “ultimately, all keys of the priesthood are held by the Lord Jesus Christ, whose priesthood it is. He is the one who determines what keys are delegated to mortals and how those keys will be used.”