“Three Lessons from Studying the Doctrine and Covenants,” Liahona, December 2021
Three Lessons from Studying the Doctrine and Covenants
We can learn about the Lord’s relationship with us as we learn how He worked with Latter-day Saints in the past.
Illustration by Joshua Dennis
Studying the Doctrine and Covenants this year has caused me to think about the many ways I come to know God. Sometimes I sense His presence with immediacy. I am often surprised at how close He feels when I spend time in nature. And I can point to moments when the Lord has spoken to me clearly by the Spirit.
One important part of my quest to know God involves looking back at the past. For example, I am often able to find meaning in my trials only after some time has passed. I also benefit from studying the lives of others who have sought to know God. Their experiences help me be more patient in my strivings and recognize and trust my own spiritual promptings. In short, they help me better understand how the Lord interacts with His children.
Perhaps this is why the Lord commanded the Saints at the Church’s founding meeting, “Behold, there shall be a record kept among you” (Doctrine and Covenants 21:1). The historical record preserved by early Church members is a rich source for studying how God works with us. I have found it especially useful to study the revelations in historical context, using the resources in the Restoration and Church History section of the Gospel Library.
Here are three interrelated lessons I have learned from studying the Doctrine and Covenants and the early history of the Church this year.
Questions Precede Revelation
Almost all of the revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants were given in response to questions. Only one appears to have been an unanticipated divine intervention (see Doctrine and Covenants 27). The queries that led to these revelations were prompted by scripture study, excruciating trials, or cultural ideas of the day.1 They reflected the faith, curiosity, doubts, and fears of the early Saints.
Doctrine and Covenants 42 is a response to five specific questions about how the Saints should gather and support one another.2 The Lord’s answers are important, not only for their content but also for what they tell us about how revelation works. The Saints were prepared by their circumstances and their ponderings. They formulated questions, approached God, and truly valued His answers.
Think of how you respond to information given to you out of context, like an unsolicited web advertisement for some shoes. It may interest you, but you will more likely ignore it. However, when you need shoes and go searching for a pair that fits your needs and your feet, you pay close attention to what you find and make a decision to act. This applies likewise to our spiritual seeking.
The Lord Honors Our Agency
Our choices matter, not only to our own growth but also to the shape of the Lord’s work on the earth. He is the conductor, and we are members of the orchestra. Our talents, background, and decisions contribute to the beauty of the music. Kirtland, Ohio, rose to prominence in the early Church in part because early missionaries chose to stop there and visit friends on their way to the field to which they were called. Their connections and their inspired choice to visit Kirtland were important to the unfolding Restoration.
And the Lord allows all of us, including Joseph Smith, to make mistakes. We are His children, and like any wise parent, He is invested in our growth and wants us to learn through experience.
The Lord allowed Joseph Smith to give the first 116 pages of the Book of Mormon translation to Martin Harris even though the Lord knew they would be lost. This experience was painful for Joseph, but he learned to become a more careful steward. He received forgiveness and was “again called to the work” (Doctrine and Covenants 3:10).
The Lord is invested in our growth and wants us to learn through experience.
Here a Little and There a Little
The Lord didn’t hand Joseph Smith a comprehensive handbook of instructions in the Sacred Grove. The revelations reflect an ongoing dialogue between the Lord and the Prophet. Sometimes they opened vistas on the eternities. Often, they were sufficient for the needs of the day, and Joseph came back later with additional questions.
Early revelations commanded the Saints to gather and build a city of Zion in Missouri. When the Saints were expelled from the area, the Lord directed Joseph Smith to attempt to regain their land, first with Zion’s Camp and later by petitioning the government for help. Later, Joseph learned that Zion was much bigger than one city. The gathering could continue in other places as the Saints established stakes and built temples.3
The circumstances in which the Saints live change drastically over time. What a blessing to have continuing revelation help us navigate the needs of our changing world! The core doctrines of the gospel endure, but the ongoing Restoration anticipates the challenge of change.