Restoration of Jesus Christ’s Church
July 11, 2011
Filed under Mormon Beliefs
by Karla
At some period of time, the true church was lost from the face of the earth. It became non-existent. There was what people may call blindness about the truth. People may recall that when Jesus Christwas on the earth, He established His Church among His followers. After His Crucifixion and the deaths of His Apostles, the fulness of the gospel was taken from the earth because of widespread apostasy. With this happening, a glorious restoration was vital.
Through the Prophet Joseph Smith, our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christrestored the fulness of the gospel. The true Church of Jesus Christ is on the earth again and has been organized as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly called the Mormon Church). Because of this restoration, the teachings and ordinances necessary for salvation are available to all people. People are blessed today because of this great restoration.
The word “restore” means to “bring back into existence . . . or into a former or original state” (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed. [2003], 1063). Many of the biblical prophets promised that in the last days God would restore the gospel one last time before the Savior’s Second Coming. In 1820, God began restoring the gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Through the Prophet Joseph Smith, Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ restored the fullness of the gospel. The true Church of Jesus Christ is on the earth again. Because of the Restoration, the teachings and ordinances necessary for salvation are once again available to all people.
Below is an outline of events about the Restoration of the True Church:
Early spring of 1820: Seeking the true Church of Jesus Christ, 14-year-old Joseph Smith prayed in a grove of trees near his home in Palmyra, New York. In answer to his humble prayer, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ visited him and told him that he must not join any of the churches on the earth at that time. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:11-19.) In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, this experience is referred to as Joseph Smith’s First Vision.
September 21–22, 1823: Joseph Smith was visited by an angel named Moroni. Moroni prophesied of coming events and told Joseph of the Book of Mormonrecord, written on plates of gold. The angel allowed Joseph to see the gold plates, which were buried in the nearby Hill Cumorah. On the plates was a record of the ancient peoples of the Americas and Jesus Christ’s dealings with them. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:27-53.)
September 22, 1827. Joseph Smith received the gold plates from Moroni at the Hill Cumorah after having met with Moroni on 22 September of each of the previous four years. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:53, 59.)
May 15, 1829: Having read about baptism for the remission of sins as they worked on the translation of the gold plates, Joseph Smith and his scribe Oliver Cowdery went to a secluded area to inquire of the Lord concerning the matter. There, on the banks of the Susquehanna River near Harmony, Pennsylvania, they received the answer to their prayer. John the Baptist, a resurrected being, came to them as “a messenger from heaven . . . in a cloud of light.” He conferred upon them the Aaronic Priesthood. Then, in obedience to John’s instructions, Joseph and Oliver baptized each other and ordained each other to the Aaronic Priesthood. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:68–72; see also D&C 13.)
May 1829: The ancient apostles Peter, James, and John conferred the Melchizedek Priesthood upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. (See D&C 128:20.)
June 1829: Guided “by the gift and power of God” (D&C 135:3), the Prophet Joseph Smith completed the translation of the Book of Mormon.
March 26, 1830: The first printed copies of the Book of Mormon became available in Palmyra, New York.
April 6, 1830: The Church was organized in Fayette Township, New York, beginning with six members.
March 27, 1836: The Kirtland Temple, the first temple built in this dispensation, was dedicated. The Prophet Joseph Smith offered the dedicatory prayer, which had been given to him by revelation. (See D&C 109.)
April 3, 1836: The Savior appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple. Moses, Elias, and Elijah also appeared and gave priesthood keys to Joseph and Oliver. Elijah brought the keys of the sealing power, which make it possible for families to be sealed together forever. (See D&C 110.)
The need for restoration has been explain in various ways in the scriptures which include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following:
a. “restitution of all things” (Acts 3:21). This also means the restoration of all things including the true church, the gospel, the priesthood, and sacred covenants and ordinances needed to return to the presence of God.
b. “times of refreshing” (Acts 3:19)
c. “that faith also might increase in the earth” (D&C 1:21). One of the parts of the great message of restoration is the Book of Mormon. It is the cornerstone of the restored religion of the Lord Jesus Christ. The written words found in the Book of Mormon serve as a testimony of the restoration of the true church. The Book of Mormon also says, “Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ” (2 Ne. 32:3).
The restoration is a manifestation of the Lord’s love for His children. Indeed, the partakers of this great restoration are so blessed that they should exclaim in gratitude to the Lord.
Just as Jacob (one of the prophets of the Book of Mormon) said regarding this knowledge as it let people see “things as they really are” and “as they really will be” (Jacob 4:13), this great restoration should be a a time of refreshing, a time of restitution, and a time of quiet faith. This is God’s work.
The lives of people today are blessed because of the restoration. Because of past apostasy , restoration is vital for the Plan of Salvation to be fulfilled. We must know all required of us to return to the presence of God.
References:
“Apostasy, Restoration, and Lessons in Faith,” Andrew C. Skinner, December 2005
“The Wondrous Restoration,” Neal A. Maxwell, April 2003