From the opening lines of the Joseph Smith story to the resounding Introduction to the Doctrine and Covenants, those seeking a testimony of the truth of the restoration of the gospel can find a testimony that God the Father and Jesus Christ restored the gospel upon the earth, unfolding line upon line first in broad strokes and then in detail the plan of salvation for all mankind through a prophet of the latter-days: Joseph Smith.
Introduction to the Doctrine and Covenants
We read in the opening lines of the Introduction to the Doctrine and Covenants the following text:
The Doctrine and Covenants is a collection of divine revelations and inspired declarations given for the establishment and regulation of the kingdom of God on the earth in the last days.Testimonies of Joseph Smith
In the revelations, one hears the tender but firm voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, speaking anew in the dispensation of the fulness of times; and the work that is initiated herein is preparatory to His Second Coming, in fulfillment of and in concert with the words of all the holy prophets since the world began.
These sacred revelations were received in answer to prayer, in times of need, and came out of real-life situations involving real people.
The Prophet and his associates sought for divine guidance, and these revelations certify that they received it. In the revelations, one sees the restoration and unfolding of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness of times
The early Latter-day Saints prized the revelations and viewed them as messages from God.
Thomas S. Monson: Testimony: The Prophet Joseph Smith: Teacher by Example
Dallin H. Oakes: Testimony: Joseph the Man and the Prophet
James E. Faust: Testimony: The Expanding Inheritance from Joseph Smith
Brigham Young 1847-1877
Testimony: President Brigham Young's Witness of the Prophet Joseph Smith
Brigham Young announced, “I feel like shouting hallelujah, all the time, when I think that I ever know Joseph Smith, the Prophet whom the Lord raised up . . . and to whom He gave keys and power to build up the kingdom of God on the earth and sustain it” (Journal of Discourses 3:51; hereafter JD).
Today many look back on Brigham Young as the Great Leader, a man singularly capable of molding a people and building a flourishing commonwealth in an unpromising desert, but that is not how he thought of himself. Even after leading the Saints for 30 years, in his own eyes he was the Disciple, a follower of his prophet and mentor Joseph Smith. He understood and acknowledged that in ways large and small his leadership flowed from that discipleship.
Brigham Young was the quintessential disciple. He loved Joseph as a friend and admired and emulated his personal qualities, but more importantly, he also revered and followed him as a prophet of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Though he gained a testimony and was baptized months before meeting the Prophet, for Brigham Young the restoration and the accompanying opportunities that changed his life came through Joseph Smith. And, once he met him, he devoted his life to supporting, defending, and learning from “our Moses that the Lord has given us” (Brigham Young Letter to Mary Ann Young, 16 Oct 1840, LDS Church Archives; hereafter CA). Joseph was his father in the gospel, his mentor, his model, his friend; he was Joseph’s intrepid defender, enthusiastic supporter, and finally successor, who unwaveringly and forever sought to carry out the Prophet’s measures.
(Excerpt from an excellent BYU article about Brigham Young and Joseph Smith's relationship: Discipleship: Brigham Young and Joseph Smith Ronald K. Esplin)
John Taylor Age 40. Born 1808. Aprox. 1848
John Taylor 1880-1887
Testimony: Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Restoration
After President Brigham Young died, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, presided over by John Taylor, led the Latter-day Saints for three years. On 10 October 1880, John Taylor was sustained as President of the Church. President Taylor was a gifted writer and journalist who published a book on the Atonement and edited some of the Church’s most important periodicals, including the Times and Seasons. On many occasions he displayed his courage and his deep devotion to the restored gospel, including voluntarily joining his brethren in Carthage Jail, where he was shot four times.. (Our Heritage: A Brief History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1996), 105.
The first excerpt in the Doctrine & Covenants penned by other than Joseph Smith was written by John Taylor announcing the death of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. (See Section 135 of the Doctrine & Covenants)
Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it. In the short space of twenty years, he has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing it on two continents; has sent the fulness of the everlasting gospel, which it contained, to the four quarters of the earth; has brought forth the revelations and commandments which compose this book of Doctrine and Covenants, and many other wise documents and instructions for the benefit of the children of men; gathered many thousands of the Latter-day Saints, founded a great city, and left a fame and name that cannot be slain. He lived great, and he died great in the eyes of God and his people; and like most of the Lord’s anointed in ancient times, has sealed his mission and his works with his own blood; and so has his brother Hyrum. In life they were not divided, and in death they were not separated! (D&C 135:3)
I was
acquainted with Joseph Smith for years. I have traveled with him; I have
been with him in private and in public; I have associated with him in
councils of all kinds; I have listened hundreds of times to his public
teachings, and his advice to his friends and associates of a more
private nature. I have been at his house and seen his deportment in his family.
I have seen him arraigned before the tribunals of his country, and have
seen him honorably acquitted, and delivered from the pernicious breath
of slander, and the machinations and falsehoods of wicked and corrupt
men.
I was with him living, and with him when he died, when he was
murdered in Carthage jail by a ruthless mob. …
I have seen him, then, under these various circumstances, and I testify before God, angels, and men, that he was a good, honorable, virtuous man—that his doctrines were good, scriptural, and wholesome—that his precepts were such as became a man of God—that his private and public character was unimpeachable—and that he lived and died as a man of God and a gentleman. This is my testimony. If it is disputed, bring me a person authorized to receive an affidavit, and I will make one to this effect. I therefore testify of things which I know and of things which I have seen.12
I have seen him, then, under these various circumstances, and I testify before God, angels, and men, that he was a good, honorable, virtuous man—that his doctrines were good, scriptural, and wholesome—that his precepts were such as became a man of God—that his private and public character was unimpeachable—and that he lived and died as a man of God and a gentleman. This is my testimony. If it is disputed, bring me a person authorized to receive an affidavit, and I will make one to this effect. I therefore testify of things which I know and of things which I have seen.12
Wilford Woodruff. Age Aprox 41. Taken in Boston between 1848-1850. Born 1807.
Testimony: Joseph Smith: Prophet, Seer, and Revelator
From his early days as a new member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Wilford Woodruff had a testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He said: “I was fully satisfied that Joseph was a Prophet before I saw him. I had no prejudices on my mind against him.”1
In April 1834, about four months after he was baptized, Brother
Woodruff traveled to Kirtland, Ohio, where he met the Prophet Joseph for
the first time. He later recounted:
“My
first introduction to him was rather singular. I saw him out in the
field with his brother Hyrum; he had on a very old hat, and was engaged
shooting at a mark [or target]. I was introduced to him and he invited
me home with him.
“I
accepted the invitation and I watched him pretty closely, to see what I
could learn. He remarked, while passing to his house, that this was the
first hour he had spent in recreation for a long time.
“Shortly
after we arrived at his house he went into an adjoining room and
brought out a wolf-skin, and said, ‘Brother Woodruff, I want you to help
me to tan this,’ so I pulled off my coat, went to work and helped him,
and felt honored in so doing. … He wanted this wolf’s skin to put upon
his wagon seat. …
“This was my first introduction to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the great Seer of this last dispensation.”2
Recalling
this experience, President Woodruff said that some people would have
been offended to see a church leader participate in such activities. But
his own observations of Joseph Smith, both in public and in private,
only strengthened his testimony of the Prophet’s mission. From those
early days in Kirtland until the Prophet’s martyrdom 10 years later,
Wilford Woodruff served faithfully with Joseph Smith, even when friends
and associates in the Church apostatized. He said, “With all the
apostasies that we have had, and with all the difficulties and
afflictions we have been called to pass through, … it was no temptation
to me to doubt this work or to doubt that Joseph Smith was a prophet of
God.”3
On
March 19, 1897, 90-year-old President Woodruff made an audio recording
of his testimony. He was the first President of the Church to do so. In
his short message he spent much of the time testifying of the Prophet
Joseph’s mission, reflecting a lifelong dedication to his friend and
leader:
“I
bear my testimony that Joseph Smith was a true Prophet of God, ordained
of God to lay the foundation of His Church and kingdom in the last
dispensation and fulness of times. … The Prophet Joseph laid down his
life for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ, and he will be
crowned as a martyr in the presence of God and the Lamb. In all his
testimonies to us, the power of God was visibly manifest in the Prophet
Joseph.”4
Lorenzo Snow. Age 39. Taken Aprox. 1853. Born 1814
Lorenzo Snow 1898-1901
Testimony: The Prophet Joseph Smith
“Perhaps there are very few men now living who were so well acquainted with Joseph Smith the Prophet as I was,” President Lorenzo Snow said in 1900. “I was with him oftentimes. I visited him in his family, sat at his table, associated with him under various circumstances, and had private interviews with him for counsel.”1
In
addition to these private interactions, Lorenzo Snow witnessed Joseph
Smith in public—in his ministry as a friend to the Saints and as the
Prophet of the Restoration. He told of a meeting Joseph Smith attended
in the partially constructed Nauvoo Temple. The Prophet walked to the
stand, accompanied by a minister of another faith. The minister “was
intensely solemn. When anything was said that created merriment or
laughter among the people, [he] remained perfectly quiet, not even
showing the least change of countenance.” In contrast, Joseph Smith
“felt very well that morning” and made a comment that “caused some
laughter among the people” before the meeting began. “After the opening
of the meeting,” Lorenzo recounted, “President Smith got up, and I never
heard him speak with more power than on this occasion. The people were
delighted, he was filled with the Spirit of God and spoke with great
force and eloquence.”2
Although President Snow was impressed by the experiences he had with Joseph Smith, his testimony of the Prophet’s mission was not based on those experiences. He repeatedly declared that he had received his testimony from the Holy Ghost. He said: “As to [Joseph Smith] being a man of truth and honor I, nor any one else that knew him, have any reason to question for a moment. But then I never went forth to preach the principles of this Gospel depending entirely upon any information I received through him or any other man; but I believed on his words, coming as they did to me as the words of truth, from an inspired man of God. … The Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost which all men may receive and enjoy, … confirmed the truth of what he had told me, and it became knowledge to me of that nature which no man can give nor take away.”3
Although President Snow was impressed by the experiences he had with Joseph Smith, his testimony of the Prophet’s mission was not based on those experiences. He repeatedly declared that he had received his testimony from the Holy Ghost. He said: “As to [Joseph Smith] being a man of truth and honor I, nor any one else that knew him, have any reason to question for a moment. But then I never went forth to preach the principles of this Gospel depending entirely upon any information I received through him or any other man; but I believed on his words, coming as they did to me as the words of truth, from an inspired man of God. … The Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost which all men may receive and enjoy, … confirmed the truth of what he had told me, and it became knowledge to me of that nature which no man can give nor take away.”3
Joseph F. Smith. Age 20
President Joseph F. Smith. Sacred Grove. 1905.
Testimony: A Personal Witness of the Prophet Joseph Smith
Joseph F.
Smith was born in 1838 during the height of the Missouri persecutions
in a small cabin near the temple site in Far West. At the time of
Joseph’s birth, his father, Hyrum Smith, was imprisoned at Richmond,
Missouri, and his mother, Mary Fielding Smith, was left alone to care
for her children.
Young Joseph moved with his family from Missouri to Nauvoo, Illinois, where an event occurred that he
remembered for the rest of his life—the murder of his father and uncle
at Carthage Jail. Joseph never forgot seeing his father for the last
time when, on the way to Carthage on horseback, he picked up his son,
kissed him, and set him down. Nor could he forget the terror of hearing a
neighbor rap on the window at night to tell his mother that Hyrum had
been killed. The sight of his father and uncle lying in their coffins in
the Mansion House in Nauvoo never faded from his memory.
President Joseph F. Smith said of the Prophet’s work:
“I bear my
testimony to you and to the world, that Joseph Smith was raised up by
the power of God to lay the foundations of this great latter-day work,
to reveal the fulness of the gospel to the world in this dispensation,
to restore the Priesthood of God to the world, by which men may act in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, and it will be accepted of God; it will be by his authority. I bear my testimony to it; I know that it is true.”2
___________________________________________________
Heber J. Grant Age 12
Testimony: The Mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith
Heber J. Grant’s testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith began at an early age as his mother and her friend Eliza R. Snow told
him of their personal experiences with the Prophet. His testimony of the
Prophet was also influenced by the testimonies of Presidents Brigham
Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, and Joseph F.
Smith—men who had been personally acquainted with Joseph Smith.
President Grant said, “By the testimony of my mother and hundreds of
others who knew the Prophet Joseph, as well as by the revelations of the
Spirit of God to me, I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God.”1
Throughout his ministry as an Apostle and as President of the Church, Heber J. Grant loved to testify of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the gospel. He declared: “No man ever had more real joy in testifying of his knowledge that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, and that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God, than I have had. I rejoice in it.”2
Throughout his ministry as an Apostle and as President of the Church, Heber J. Grant loved to testify of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the gospel. He declared: “No man ever had more real joy in testifying of his knowledge that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, and that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God, than I have had. I rejoice in it.”2
George Albert Smith 1845-1951
Testimony: The Prophet Joseph Smith, God's Instrument in Restoring the Truth
George Albert Smith was born on April 4, 1870, to John Henry and Sarah Farr Smith in a humble home in Salt Lake City. The Smith family had a great legacy of service in the kingdom of God. George Albert’s father would later serve in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and in the First Presidency. His grandfather and namesake, George A. Smith, was a cousin to the Prophet Joseph Smith and was among the first Latter-day Saint pioneers to enter the Salt Lake Valley in 1847; George A. Smith was also an Apostle and a counselor to President Brigham Young. George Albert’s great-grandfather John Smith served as Patriarch to the Church and as the first stake president in Salt Lake City. And his maternal grandfather, Lorin Farr, was the first mayor of Ogden, Utah, and the first stake president in that city.
Near the 100th anniversary of the Prophet Joseph Smith's
birth, Elder George Albert Smith traveled with President Joseph F.
Smith and others to visit places of importance in the life of the
Prophet. On the morning of December 23, 1905, a monument to Joseph Smith
was dedicated at his birthplace in Vermont. It was a moving experience
for George Albert Smith and those in his company to be in a place of
such significance in the Restoration of the gospel. “Our tears flowed
freely,” he recalled. “Under the influence of the Spirit, every soul was
humbled, every heart was melted, and we rejoiced in the blessings of
our Heavenly Father.”1
George Albert Smith was asked to give the benediction at the dedicatory
services. After summarizing the day in his journal, he wrote: “Thus
ended one of the most eventful days of my life. I am thankful to be one
of the few of our people to assist in the task just completed.”2
They
later went to the site of the First Vision, in Palmyra, New York. Elder
Smith recalled: “We went into the grove where Joseph had knelt down and
asked the Lord to inform him which one of the churches he should join.
We were impressed to sing, in that hallowed place, the beautiful … hymn,
‘Joseph Smith’s First Prayer.’”3
After
visiting the Hill Cumorah, the Kirtland Temple, and other sites
connected with the mission of the Prophet, the company was called
together by President Joseph F. Smith on the final evening of the trip.
“After singing several of the songs of Zion, each member of the party
was permitted to testify of the goodness and mercy of our Father unto
us. The Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon us, and we shed tears of
joy and happiness.”4
Several
years later, while George Albert Smith was serving as President of the
Church, some books were published that attempted to defame Joseph Smith.
In a general conference of the Church, President Smith boldly defended
the Prophet, bearing testimony of his mission in these words:
“Many of the benefits and blessings that have come to me have come through that man who gave his life for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
There have been some who have belittled him, but I would like to say
that those who have done so will be forgotten and their remains will go
back to mother earth, if they have not already gone, and the odor of
their infamy will never die, while the glory and honor and majesty and
courage and fidelity manifested by the Prophet Joseph Smith will attach
to his name forever.”5
David O McKay 1951-1970
Testimony: The Divine Calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith
President David O. McKay said, “Since childhood it has been very easy for me to believe in the reality of the visions of the Prophet Joseph Smith”2
Speaking of Joseph Smith David O McKay said:
"Great men have the ability to see clearly into the heart of things. They discern truth. They think independently. They act nobly. They influence strong men to follow them. Small men sneer at them, ridicule them, persecute them, but the critics die and are forgotten, and the great man lives on forever."
Joseph Fielding Smith 1970-1972
Testimony: Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Witnesses for Christ
From the time he was very young, Joseph Fielding Smith knew that his family had a special connection to the Prophet Joseph Smith.
He was inspired by the example of his grandfather Hyrum Smith, an older
brother and loyal friend to the Prophet Joseph. Hyrum served faithfully
at his brother’s side as a leader in the Church. He also helped with
the publication of the Book of Mormon
and was called to be one of the Eight Witnesses of the book. On June
27, 1844, Joseph and Hyrum were martyred in Carthage, Illinois, sealing
their testimonies of the Savior and His gospel. “In life they were not
divided, and in death they were not separated!” (D&C 135:3).
Joseph
Fielding Smith never knew his Smith grandparents. Long before he was
born, his grandfather Hyrum was martyred. Hyrum’s wife Mary Fielding
Smith also died young. Joseph Fielding Smith said: “I never knew my
Grandmother Smith. I have always regretted that, because she was one of
the most noble women who ever lived, but I did know her good sister, my
Aunt Mercy Thompson, and as a boy I used to go and visit her in her home
and sit at her knee, where she told me stories about the Prophet Joseph
Smith, and, oh, how grateful I am for that experience.”1
Joseph
Fielding Smith also learned from the example of his father, Joseph F.
Smith, who had known the Prophet Joseph Smith personally.
Of his father,
Joseph Fielding Smith said: “There was no element of doubt or
uncertainty in his testimony. Especially was this so when he spoke of
the divinity of our Savior or the mission of the prophet Joseph Smith.”2
These
examples and teachings led Joseph Fielding Smith to have a testimony of
the restored gospel in his childhood.
“I do not remember the time when I
did not believe in the mission of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ nor in the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith,”3 he later said.
When he taught the gospel, he sometimes expressed his
testimony in familial terms: “Do I love the Prophet Joseph Smith? Yes, I
do, as my father did before me. I love him because he was the servant
of God and because of the restoration of the gospel and because of the
benefits and blessings that have come to me and mine, and to you and
yours, through the blessings that were bestowed upon this man and those
who were associated with him.”4
Harold B. Lee 1972-1973
Testimony: Joseph Smith, Prophet of the Living God
President Harold B. Lee had a strong testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and often used the Prophet’s words as he taught gospel principles. He knew that a testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith’s mission is essential to a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
President Lee stated:
“We must know for certainty in our hearts and minds that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world. We must know that this is indeed the Church of Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God on earth in these last days; and finally we must have a testimony that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.”3
We must
accept the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith as the
instrumentality through which the restoration of the gospel and the
organization of the Church of Jesus Christ was accomplished. Each member
of the Church, to be prepared for the millennial reign, must receive a
testimony, each for himself, of the divinity of the work established by
Joseph Smith. It was this that was taught plainly by the Saints after
the advent of the Savior upon the earth, and one of the leaders in our
day has said it again, when he declared, I suppose with reference to the
parable of the five foolish and five wise virgins in the Master’s
parable [see Matthew 25:1–13],
“The time will come when no man nor woman will be able to endure on
borrowed light. Each will have to be guided by the light within
himself.” [Orson F. Whitney, Life of Heber C. Kimball (1945), 450.]6
You
who have searched deeply into the scriptures, you who have sought to
gain a testimony of the divine witness of the Spirit that every one of
you has a right to receive by the witness of the Holy Ghost,
there can be within you … one of the most thrilling of all the
experiences that can ever come to you when you can say in your heart, “I
know with all my soul now as I have never known to the extent that I
know it now that Jesus is the Lord, the Savior of the world, and that
Joseph Smith, the martyr, was the prophet whom the Lord used to bring
His Church into existence in this day.”7
Spencer W. Kimball 1973-1985
Testimony: The Prophet Joseph Smith
During
the 1970s, President Spencer W. Kimball traveled with other Church
leaders all over the world to meet with members in area conferences. At
one of these conferences, he expressed gratitude for the legacy of the Prophet Joseph Smith:
“Because
a boy fourteen years old went out in the woods to pray in New York, all
of these hundreds of thousands of people come to area conferences.
Because the fourteen-year-old boy went out in the woods to pray, having
read in the scriptures, ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God’ (James 1:5), because he did live the revelations from on high, we have The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints. We have all of the blessings that can make us the
happiest people in the whole world, because a boy of fourteen went out
into the woods to pray. I am grateful that Joseph found his way into the
woods, and I am grateful that he knew what he was doing and that he was
serious-minded enough that he could take the word of the Lord as it
came to him and enlarge upon it and build this kingdom.”1
Ezra Taft Benson 1985-1994
Testimony: Joseph Smith: Prophet to Our Generation
Another
test of a true prophet was established by the Savior Himself. True
prophets should be distinguished from false prophets by the standard,
“By their fruits ye shall know them.” (Matt. 7:20.) Consider some of the “fruits” of Joseph Smith’s teachings:
The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints takes care of its poor and
needy by tithes and offerings from Church members. Latter-day Saints
take seriously the Savior’s statement that “inasmuch as ye have done it
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matt. 25:40.)
Howard W. Hunter 1994-1995
"As we sang 'We Thank Thee, O
God, for a Prophet' . . . , I thought of the Prophet Joseph Smith. How
grateful we are for his life and his mission. Joseph Smith was a man
committed to his Heavenly Father's work. He loved his fellowmen, and he
spent his life in serving them. Joseph Smith was the instrument through
which the Lord restored the fulness of the everlasting gospel. He was
the Prophet of the Restoration.
"Joseph Smith's greatness consists in one thing—the truthfulness of his declaration that he saw the Father and the Son and that he responded to the reality of that divine revelation. He was directed to reestablish the true and living church, restored in these modern times as it existed in the day of the Savior's own mortal ministry. The Prophet Joseph Smith was fearless in pursuing this divine mission. On one occasion he said: 'I understand my mission and business. God Almighty is my shield; and what can man do if God is my friend? I shall not be sacrificed until my time comes; then I shall be offered freely' ( History of the Church, 5:259)."
"Joseph Smith's greatness consists in one thing—the truthfulness of his declaration that he saw the Father and the Son and that he responded to the reality of that divine revelation. He was directed to reestablish the true and living church, restored in these modern times as it existed in the day of the Savior's own mortal ministry. The Prophet Joseph Smith was fearless in pursuing this divine mission. On one occasion he said: 'I understand my mission and business. God Almighty is my shield; and what can man do if God is my friend? I shall not be sacrificed until my time comes; then I shall be offered freely' ( History of the Church, 5:259)."
Gordon B. Hinckley 1995-2008
Testimony: Joseph Smith Jr.--Prophet of God, Mighty Servant
We do not worship the Prophet. We worship God our Eternal Father and the risen Lord Jesus Christ. But we acknowledge the Prophet; we proclaim him; we respect him; we reverence him as an instrument in the hands of the Almighty in restoring to the earth the ancient truths of the divine gospel, together with the priesthood through which the authority of God is exercised in the affairs of His Church and for the blessing of His people.
This is a link to a 30 minute audio by President Hinckley about the Prophet Joseph Smith
Perspectives on the Prophet Joseph Smith
There are other audio presentations about Joseph Smith in this series available through the above link.
"When one thinks about such prophets and leaders as Adam, Moses,
Isaiah, Abraham, and Nephi, is it justifiable to say that Joseph Smith
did more than any of these for the salvation of humanity? Likely the
Prophet Joseph Smith was not greater than they were in righteousness or
commitment, but only Jesus has done more for the salvation of God’s
children than did the Prophet, as is evident in the following list of
some of the things he did under the direction of the Lord:
He taught correct concepts about the nature of the Father and Son.
He was the means by which the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods were restored.
He organized the Church of Jesus Christ again on the earth under the direction of the Savior.
He revealed the true meaning of Zion, its location in the last days, and the laws by which it shall be governed.
He worked on a translation of the Bible, restoring lost scripture and correcting erroneous translations.
He
established settlements of the Saints, teaching them principles of
social order, city planning, economics, and so on, in addition to
teaching them spiritual principles.
He restored the keys and knowledge of temple ordinances for both the living and the dead.
He received keys of restoration from Moses, Elias, and Elijah.
He
started a missionary program that has involved tens of thousands of
missionaries and resulted in millions of converts in countries all over
the world.
He translated by inspiration of God papyri from Egypt, containing some of the writings of Abraham.
The
Lord revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith many principles and
concepts of the gospel which had been lost or corrupted over the
centuries. The Prophet Joseph Smith then:
Explained man’s relationship to God.
Explained the differences between the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods.
Explained the different offices of the priesthood, the duties of each, and the manner in which they are organized.
Set forth the proper organization, name, and purpose of the Church of Jesus Christ.
Taught that our life on earth is a probation, a time to work out our individual salvation.
Received a revelation of the three degrees of glory and what we must do to prepare to live once again with God.
Explained the nature and order of the Resurrection.
Showed how saving ordinances can be performed vicariously for those who did not receive them in mortality.
Set
forth the principles on which Zion will be built, the nature of the
Millennium, and the kingdom of God and how it will eventually be
established on earth.
Added to our knowledge of the Apostasy and why it came.
Pointed out the fulfillment of various prophecies.
Announced the coming of Elijah, and explained his mission.
Served as an example of the role of a living prophet.
Restored the principle of priesthood administration to the sick.
Built temples and revealed temple ordinances for the living and the dead.
Brought forth the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the writings in the Pearl of Great Price.
Set down the duties of Church members and the laws by which the Church is governed.
Taught the doctrine of common consent.
Explained the role of Satan in the gospel plan.
Gave the Saints the Lord’s principles by which we can avoid being deceived in this life.
Taught the true nature of the Atonement of Christ and its relationship to the principles of justice and mercy.
Clarified the role of women in the kingdom of God.
Received the revelation of the oath and covenant of the priesthood.
All
of these accomplishments were done under the direction of Jesus Christ
and ultimately the credit belongs to Him. But Joseph Smith was His
chosen instrument in bringing all these things to pass. This is why we
can rightly say that the Prophet did more for the salvation of humanity
than anyone except the Savior Himself."
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