This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide covers Doctrine and Covenants 60-63, which includes direction from the Lord about missionary work.
Following are a few quotes from past and present Church leaders about these sections of the Doctrine and Covenants.
Doctrine and Covenants 60
“There has never been a greater need for us to profess our faith, privately and publicly (see Doctrine and Covenants 60:2). Though some profess atheism, there are many who are open to additional truths about God. To these sincere seekers, we need to affirm the existence of God the Eternal Father, the divine mission of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the reality of the Restoration. We must be valiant in our testimony of Jesus. Each of us has many opportunities to proclaim our spiritual convictions to friends and neighbors, to fellow workers and to casual acquaintances. We should use these opportunities to express our love for our Savior, our witness of His divine mission and our determination to serve Him. Our children should also hear us bear our testimonies frequently. We should also strengthen our children by encouraging them to define themselves by their growing testimonies, not just by their recognitions in scholarship, sports or other school activities.”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2008 general conference, “Testimony”
“You and I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is the pearl of great price. Each of those little grains of sand are Abraham’s children. They need to be cultured to become pearls. They need the right friend, a responsibility to help them grow in service and nourishment with charity to retain them to truly become pearls of great worth in our Father’s kingdom. …
“Do we invite our friends to come to church with us? Do we go with the missionaries as they teach the discussions to our friends? Do we invite them to be taught in our homes? Do we visit them between the discussions? Are we doing what the Savior would have us do? Do we even open our mouths?
“The Lord said: ‘With some I am not well pleased, for they will not open their mouths, but they hide the talent which I have given unto them, because of the fear of man. Wo unto such, for mine anger is kindled against them.
“‘And it shall come to pass, if they are not more faithful unto me, it shall be taken away, even that which they have’ (Doctrine and Covenants 60:2–3).”
— The late Elder E Ray Bateman, then a General Authority Seventy, October 1998 general conference, “Pearls From the Sand”
“Those who have the gift to know must give their witness so that those who have the gift to believe on their words can enjoy the benefit of that gift.
“Speaking to some of the earliest missionaries of this dispensation, the Lord said: ‘But with some I am not well pleased, for they will not open their mouths, but they hide the talent which I have given unto them, because of the fear of man. Wo unto such, for mine anger is kindled against them’ (Doctrine and Covenants 60:2).”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 1990 general conference, “Witnesses of Christ”
Doctrine and Covenants 61
“The Lord stands near us, and He has said:
“‘What I say unto one I say unto all, be of good cheer, little children; for I am in your midst, and I have not forsaken you’ (Doctrine and Covenants 61:36).
“‘For after much tribulation come the blessings’ (Doctrine and Covenants 58:4).
“Sisters, I testify that these promises, given in the midst of persecutions and personal tragedies, apply to each of you in your troubling circumstances today. They are precious and remind each of us to be of good cheer and to have joy in the fullness of the gospel as we press forward through the challenges of mortality.”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, October 2020 general conference, “Be of Good Cheer”
Doctrine and Covenants 62
“Despite our mistakes, shortcomings, detours and sins, Jesus Christ’s Atonement allows us to repent, prepared to return and receive the matchless blessings God has promised — to live forever with the Father and the Son in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom (see Doctrine and Covenants 62; 70).
“Now as you all know, no one will escape death; therefore, our long-term goal and plan should be that when we return to our Heavenly Father, we will receive all that He has planned for each one of us.”
— The late President M. Russell Ballard, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2017 general conference, “Return and Receive"
“Having a gospel-sharing home will not only be a blessing for those we bring into our homes but for those who live within it. As we live in a gospel-sharing home, our testimonies become stronger and our understanding of the gospel improves. The Doctrine and Covenants teaches that we can be forgiven of our sins when we help someone else repent (see Doctrine and Covenants 62:3). We find joy in helping others come unto Christ and feel the redemptive power of His love. Our families are blessed as the testimonies and faith of both parents and children increase.”
— The late President M. Russell Ballard, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2006 general conference, “Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home”
“Our responsibility is to learn to draw upon the power of the Atonement. Otherwise we walk through mortality relying solely on our own strength. And to do that is to invite the frustration of failure and to refuse the most resplendent gift in time or eternity. … The Lord is our advocate, and He ‘knoweth the weakness of man and how to succor them who are tempted’ (Doctrine and Covenants 62:1). In other words, He knows how to succor all of us. But we activate the power of the Atonement in our lives. We do this by first believing in Him, by repenting, by obeying His commandments, by partaking of sacred ordinances and keeping covenants, and by seeking after Him in fasting and prayer, in the scriptures and in the temple.”
— Sheri L. Dew, then the second counselor in the Relief Society general presidency, April 1999 general conference, “Our Only Chance”
Doctrine and Covenants 63
“As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are invited to cultivate the gift of reverence in our lives in order to open ourselves to a deeper communion with God and His Son, Jesus Christ, simultaneously strengthening our spiritual character. Had we more of such feelings in our hearts, there would be undoubtedly greater joy and delight in our lives, and there would be less room for sorrow and sadness. We must remember that showing reverence for sacred things gives meaning to much of what we do every day and strengthens our feeling of gratitude — inspiring awe, respect and love for higher and holier things (see Doctrine and Covenants 63:64).”
— Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2025 general conference, "Reverence for Sacred Things”
“Spiritual warnings should lead to increasingly vigilant watching. You and I live in ‘a day of warning’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:58). And because we have been and will be warned, we need to be, as the apostle Paul admonished, ‘watching … with all perseverance’ (Ephesians 6:18).”
— Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2010 general conference, “Watching With All Perseverance”
“As you test gospel principles by believing without knowing, the Spirit will begin to teach you. Gradually your faith will be replaced with knowledge.
“You will be able to discern, or to see, with spiritual eyes.
“Be believing and your faith will be constantly replenished, your knowledge of the truth increased, and your testimony of the Redeemer, of the Resurrection, of the Restoration will be as ‘a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:23). You may then receive guidance on practical decisions in everyday life.”
— The late President Boyd K. Packer, then the acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 1994 general conference, “Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise”
“This church, established under the direction of Almighty God, fulfills promises made in biblical times. … It has been restored and given a name by the Lord Himself.
“He issued this solemn warning: ‘Let all men beware how they take my name in their lips’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:61).
“‘Remember,’ He added, ‘that which cometh from above is sacred, and must be spoken with care’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:64). Therefore, just as we revere His holy name, we likewise revere the name that He decreed for His church.”
— President Russell M. Nelson, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 1990 general conference, “Thus Shall My Church Be Called”
“Endurance is more than pacing up and down within the cell of our circumstance; it is not only to accept the things allotted to us, it is to ‘act for ourselves’ by magnifying what is allotted to us.
“If, for instance, we are always taking our temperature to see if we are happy, we will not be. If we are constantly comparing to see if things are fair, we are not only being unrealistic, we are being unfair to ourselves.
“Therefore, true enduring represents not merely the passage of time, but the passage of the soul — and not merely from A to B, but sometimes all the way from A to Z. To endure in faith and do God’s will (see Doctrine and Covenants 63:20; 101:35) therefore involves much more than putting up with a circumstance.”
— The late Elder Neal A. Maxwell, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 1990 general conference, “‘Endure It Well’”
“The Doctrine and Covenants gives this example:
“‘Let all men beware how they take my name in their lips —
“‘For behold, verily I say, that many there be who are under this condemnation, who use the name of the Lord, and use it in vain, having not authority’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:61–62).
“This scripture shows that we take the name of the Lord in vain when we use His name without authority. This obviously occurs when the sacred names of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, are used in what is called profanity: in hateful cursings, in angry denunciations or as marks of punctuation in common discourse.
“The names of the Father and the Son are used with authority when we reverently teach and testify of Them, when we pray and when we perform the sacred ordinances of the priesthood.
There are no more sacred or significant words in all of our language than the names of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 1986 general conference, “Reverent and Clean”
“Do not fear concerning the Church. We have had mentioned in this conference some of our critics. They mock that which is most holy to us. They jest over and hold up to ridicule that which has come by revelation from the Almighty. Any man who tries to find humor at the expense of that which is sacred to another is deeply flawed in character. Shame on those who stoop to such actions in the name of fun and on those who witness and laugh. Simple courtesy would dictate a decent respect for that which is sacred to neighbors and associates in one’s society.
“The Lord Himself has said, ‘Remember that that which cometh from above is sacred, and must be spoken with care, and by constraint of the Spirit’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:64).”
— The late President Gordon B. Hinckley, then the second counselor in the First Presidency, October 1983 general conference, “Let Us Go Forward!”
“As righteousness will increase, so will evil. We see evidences of this all about us. It sometimes causes members of the Church to despair. We may be assured, however, that the Lord will take care of this in His own time and in His own way. Hear His decree:
“‘I, the Lord, am angry with the wicked. …
“‘I have sworn in my wrath, and decreed wars upon the face of the earth, and the wicked shall slay the wicked, and fear shall come upon every man;
“‘And the saints also shall hardly escape; nevertheless, I, the Lord, am with them, and will come down in heaven from the presence of my Father and consume the wicked with unquenchable fire’ (Doctrine and Covenants 63:32–34).”
— The late President Ezra Taft Benson, then a member of the Council of the Twelve, April 1978 general conference, “May the Kingdom of God Go Forth”
