“Conference in Kirtland,” Friend, Oct. 1985, 20
Conference in Kirtland
Adapted from Doctrine and Covenants Stories (PBIC037A)
(See D&C 48, D&C 52, and D&C 54.)
Saints must keep the gospel covenant to obtain mercy.
1 Joseph Smith, the Prophet, told the Saints who still lived in New York to come to Kirtland, Ohio, to join him and the other Saints. Jesus told Joseph that the Saints in Kirtland should share their land with the Saints from New York.
2 Leman Copley had a lot of land, and he promised to share it. But when the Saints from New York moved onto his land, he did not keep his promise, and they had to move. Newell Knight was the leader of these New York Saints. Now that they had no place to live, he went to ask the Prophet Joseph what to do.
3 The Lord told Joseph that the Saints from New York should move to Missouri. Before they left, all the Saints attended a four-day conference in Kirtland.
4 During the conference the Lord told Joseph to ordain high priests in the Church. These men were the first to hold the Melchizedek Priesthood in the restored Church.
5 The Lord called several brethren to go to Missouri and to preach the gospel along the way. They were to travel by twos, and each pair was to take a different route.
6 The Lord told Joseph that the next conference of the Church would be in Missouri, on land that He would consecrate unto the Saints.