This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide covers Doctrine and Covenants 1, which prefaces the many revelations found throughout this book of scripture.
Following are a few quotes from past and present leaders about Doctrine and Covenants 1.
Chastening
“Sometimes God manifests His love by chastening us. It is a way of reminding us that He loves us and that He knows who we are. His promised blessing of peace is open to all those who courageously walk the covenant path and are willing to receive correction.
“When we recognize the chastening and are willing recipients, it becomes a spiritual surgery. Who likes surgery, by the way? But to those who need it and are willing to receive it, it can be lifesaving. The Lord chastens whom He loves. The scriptures tell us so (see Hebrews 12:5-11; Helaman 12:3; Doctrine and Covenants 1:27; 95:1). That chastening, or spiritual surgery, will bring about needed change in our lives. We will realize, brothers and sisters, that it refines and purifies our inner vessels.”
— Elder Taniela B. Wakolo, General Authority Seventy, April 2021 general conference, “God Loves His Children”
Priesthood power
“Brethren, our responsibilities as holders of the priesthood are serious matters. Other organizations can be satisfied with worldly standards of performance in delivering their messages and performing their other functions. But we who hold the priesthood of God have the divine power that even governs entrance into the celestial kingdom of God. We have the purpose and the responsibility the Lord defined in the revealed preface to the Doctrine and Covenants. We are to proclaim to the world:
“’That every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
“’That faith also might increase in the earth;
“’That mine everlasting covenant might be established;
“‘That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:20-23).”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, April 2018 general conference, “The Powers of the Priesthood”
‘It is the same’
“The Savior declared, ‘Whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:38). May we hear and heed the eternal truths taught by the Lord’s authorized representatives. As we do so, I promise our faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ will be fortified, and we will receive spiritual guidance and protection for our specific circumstances and needs.”
— Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 2015 general conference, “‘Chosen to Bear Testimony of My Name’”
“Listen to and abide by the counsel of the Brethren. Prophets often raise a voice of warning but also provide steady, pragmatic counsel to help us weather the storms of life. In the opening section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord reminds us, ‘Whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:38). Prophets help us confront the changes and challenges we constantly face.”
— Elder Steven E. Snow, then a General Authority Seventy, April 2009 general conference, “Get On with Our Lives”
“’What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:38).
“It is no small thing, my brothers and sisters, to have a prophet of God in our midst. Great and wonderful are the blessings that come into our lives as we listen to the word of the Lord given to us through him. At the same time, knowing … God’s prophet also endows us with responsibility. When we hear the counsel of the Lord expressed through the words of the president of the Church, our response should be positive and prompt. History has shown that there is safety, peace, prosperity, and happiness in responding to prophetic counsel as did Nephi of old: ‘I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded’ (1 Nephi 3:7).”
— The late President M. Russell Ballard, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2001 general conference, “‘His Word Ye Shall Receive’”
‘The only true and living church’
“The Lord has declared that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is ‘the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30). This restored Church is true because it is the Savior’s Church; He is ‘the way, the truth, and the life’ (John 14:6). And it is a living church because of the workings and gifts of the Holy Ghost. How blessed we are to live at a time when the priesthood is upon the earth and we can receive the Holy Ghost.”
— Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 2010 general conference, “Receive the Holy Ghost”
“Through Joseph Smith have been restored all the powers, keys, teachings and ordinances necessary for salvation and exaltation. You cannot go anywhere else in the world and get that. It is not to be found in any other church. It is not to be found in any philosophy of man or scientific digest or individual pilgrimage, however intellectual it may seem. Salvation is to be found in one place alone, as so designated by the Lord Himself when He said that this is ‘the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30).”
— Elder Tad R. Callister, then a General Authority Seventy, October 2009 general conference, “Joseph Smith — Prophet of the Restoration”
‘Every man walketh in his own way’
“The societies in which many of us live have for more than a generation failed to foster moral discipline. They have taught that truth is relative and that everyone decides for himself or herself what is right. Concepts such as sin and wrong have been condemned as ‘value judgments.’ As the Lord describes it, ‘Every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:16).
“As a consequence, self-discipline has eroded and societies are left to try to maintain order and civility by compulsion. …
“In the end, it is only an internal moral compass in each individual that can effectively deal with the root causes as well as the symptoms of societal decay. Societies will struggle in vain to establish the common good until sin is denounced as sin and moral discipline takes its place in the pantheon of civic virtues.”
— Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 2009 general conference, “Moral Discipline”
“A selfish person is more interested in pleasing man — especially himself — than in pleasing God. He looks only to his own needs and desires. He walks ‘in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:16). Such a person becomes disconnected from the covenant promises of God (see Doctrine and Covenants 1:15) and from the mortal friendship and assistance we all need in these tumultuous times. In contrast, if we love and serve one another as the Savior taught, we remain connected to our covenants and to our associates.”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2009 general conference, “Unselfish Service”
“Of course, there is no particular city today which personifies Babylon. Babylon was, in the time of ancient Israel, a city which had become sensual, decadent and corrupt. The principal building in the city was a temple to a false god, which we often refer to as Bel or Baal.
“However, that sensuality, corruption and decadence, and the worshipping of false gods are to be seen in many cities, great and small, scattered across the globe. As the Lord has said: ‘They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:16).
“Too many of the people of the world have come to resemble the Babylon of old by walking in their own ways, and following a god ‘whose image is in the likeness of the world.’
“One of the greatest challenges we will face is to be able to live in that world but somehow not be of that world. We have to create Zion in the midst of Babylon.”
— Elder David R. Stone, then a General Authority Seventy, April 2006 general conference, “Zion in the Midst of Babylon”
“The pursuit of so-called individual freedoms, without regard to laws the Lord has established to govern His children on earth, will result in the curse of extreme worldliness and selfishness, the decline of public and private morality, and the defiance of authority.
“Such secular societies are described in Doctrine and Covenants 1:16: ‘They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world.’
“For this reason, the Lord’s Church was instructed to follow the prophet and seek something different from what the world is seeking. Continuing on with verses 17–18 from section 1:
“’Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
“’And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets.’ …
“We boldly declare that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provides answers to the question, ‘What seek ye?’ Our Church is the means by which men and women find our Savior and His gospel. You who are gathered here in this vast congregation, and the even greater numbers of Saints viewing this conference throughout the world, are richly blessed, for you have sought and found the restored Church.”
— The late Elder L. Tom Perry, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2005 general conference, “What Seek Ye?”
By the ‘weak and the simple’
“This past year as I have visited with members of the Church, I have seen that through the faith and work of simple people, the Lord’s covenant is being established on the earth (see Doctrine and Covenants 1:17–23). …
“Because of them, faith has increased in the earth. They are an example of the miracle the Lord spoke about when He said that His gospel would be proclaimed by the weak and the simple (see Doctrine and Covenants 1:23) and that by small and simple means great things are brought to pass (see 1 Nephi 16:29).”
— Sister Julie B. Beck, then the first counselor in the Young Women general presidency, April 2005 general conference, “A Work for Me to Do”
Out of obscurity
“Ironically, as the restored Church comes ‘out of obscurity,’ what seem to be stern challenges will actually disclose further the distinctiveness of the Church (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30). Nevertheless, matching our behavior more closely with our beliefs will bring relentless reminders about the ongoing duties of discipleship.
“The restored gospel is buoyant, wide and deep — beyond our comprehension. It edifies, whether concerning divine design in the universe or stressing the importance of personal chastity and fidelity. Only meek disciples can safely handle such a bold theology.”
— The late Elder Neal A. Maxwell, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 2002 general conference, “Encircled in the Arms of His Love”
“My heart is full of gratitude on this day for the revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith and for all that he did to set in motion the Restoration, the revelations necessary for the on-rolling of this work, line upon line and precept upon precept. Ponder the ruggedness of our beginning — the humble, humble beginning — and then look at us today.
“He received the revelation, now the first section of the Doctrine and Covenants, in which the Lord promised that Joseph Smith and others would receive the power and the authority to bring the Church ‘out of obscurity and out of darkness’ (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30). … And so to all of us as we assemble here today, I hope that we have grateful hearts for the knowledge that we have and the testimonies we have and for the feelings we have, that this is only the beginning. This is only a chapter in the on-rolling of this work.”
—The late Elder David B. Haight, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2000 general conference, “Faith, Devotion and Gratitude”
