Restoration by Revelation

The image above shows a pier reaching out into the ocean. I took this picture on a walk along the beach because it struck me that this image can represent all the knowledge God possesses (the ocean) and all He has revealed to us (the pier). As is evident, we only have a small sliver of what God wants us to know. This is a good representation of the restoration of the gospel. Let me explain.

On October 14, 2025, a new First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized. I discussed the process for this in “Succession in the LDS Church.” The First Presidency is organized by revelation given to each of the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The ninth Article of Faith states, “We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.” God has now revealed the next President and Prophet of His church.

The Church’s whole restoration has been by revelation. From the First Vision, through this most recent calling of a prophet, the Lord has revealed His will with regard to this work. In this year’s “Come, Follow Me” study, every section of the Doctrine and Covenants is a revelation to a prophet of God.

This pattern was set up anciently. God explained this to the prophet Amos when he said, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Prophets and revelation from God have been present since the creation of Adam.

We believe that after the Apostles were killed and no new Apostles were chosen to replace them, the church Christ established was lost. Joseph Smith was told, “And to none else will I grant this power, to receive this same testimony among this generation, in this the beginning of the rising up and the coming forth of my church out of the wilderness—clear as the moon, and fair as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners” (Doctrine and Covenants 5:14, emphasis added).

What does it mean for the church to come out of the wilderness? I grew up in an area where there are lots of trees and forests. I know that things can be lost and hidden in those areas fairly easily. When we would explore, we would find things that had been there for many years. Some would be rusted with time, others decaying and crumbling, yet still identifiable. Some things could even be restored with a little effort.

I believe that is how the Church of Christ was lost. It was hidden from those who wanted to change the doctrine and ordinances. It was left buried in the wilderness, waiting to be restored when the time was right. That time was in the Spring of 1820 when Joseph Smith was blessed with the First Vision.

From there, God has been constantly restoring that which had been hidden. Revealing time after time the next thing needed for this time. This process will continue until the time is right for the Savior’s second coming.

This means that God is NOT done speaking to us. He has never stopped speaking and has never left us to our own devices to figure out His plan and word. He loves all of His children, from Adam to now and beyond. Why would He stop giving them direction? Especially knowing that He would send His Son a second time in millennial glory? The simple answer is, He would not.