Doctrine and Covenants 102–105 contains instructions for the Camp of Israel, later referred to as Zion’s Camp. In the summer of 1834, Zion’s Camp marched from Michigan, Ohio, and New York to assist the persecuted Saints in Missouri. Their volunteer numbers were few, but those who went learned a valuable lesson about trials and blessings. And the ending revelation to this armed march was a message to “sue for peace … to all people” (Doctrine and Covenants 105:38)
God is aware of everything you are going through right now, and He has words of comfort for us. Doctrine and Covenants 98–101 has words from God given through Joseph Smith to the Saints at Jackson County. Even though Joseph did not know the details of their trials, God did, and we can trust that He knows ours as well. So, “let your hearts be comforted” (Doctrine and Covenants 98:1), no matter what you are facing.
The Saints in 1833 were split between two Zions and were commanded to build two temples to bless God’s people. Doctrine and Covenants 94–97 makes the commandment of building temples a priority. Today, temples are still being constructed across the many places we call Zion. And for those of us not on the building committee, we can still make visiting and honoring the house of the Lord a personal priority.
Doctrine and Covenants 93 contains eternal truths that overturned the traditional religious ideas of that time. While it is not the longest section of revelation by the number of verses, it is packed with doctrinal principles—from the nature of God to how we can learn about Him. The light and truth in these scriptures can illuminate the rest of the doctrine that we and the early Saints both will come to understand.
Understanding history is all in the stories of the people who lived it. This week’s Come, Follow Me study of Doctrine and Covenants 89–92 features the Word of Wisdom. But today, we’ll learn from a historian about Emma Smith, the School of the Prophets, the translation of the Bible, and the attitudes at the time toward alcohol and tobacco that colored the world when this revelation took place. We’ll also discuss a woman who lived a whole life of service around this one event in scripture.
Two days after the revelation on war given in Doctrine and Covenants 87, the Prophet Joseph Smith received a breath of fresh air with a revelation on peace in section 88. This section is known as the “olive leaf” revelation, containing eternal truths about our relationship with God and a command to draw closer to Him in a temple. We now live in the world they wished for—where temples dot the earth, and Zion can be anywhere we gather.
Jesus relays a parable in Matthew about wheat and weeds called tares. To us, these two plants can grow together and seem indistinguishable from each other. Sections 85–87 of the Doctrine and Covenants have more insight on who we are and what our job is (and isn’t) in this story.
Six years ago, in the October 2019 women’s session of general conference, President Nelson said to all the women, “I entreat you to study prayerfully all the truths you can find about priesthood power. You might begin with Doctrine and Covenants sections 84 and 107.” This week, we will be studying the first of those powerful revelations on the oath and covenant of the priesthood and how it holds truths relevant to all of God’s children.
In Doctrine and Covenants 81-83 the Lord reiterates a command to care for the poor and needy among the church. With this (and every commandment) he also gives a promise. We can learn in these sections about the nature of covenants and callings and the promises from God when we are faithful to the end.
Elder Renlund first suggests making sure we are doing what God has asked of us and “not something extra that we impose on ourselves.”
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Elder Kearon believes this truth “can console all of us.”
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These resources can help any family dive deeper into the Doctrine and Covenants in 2025.
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What are some life lessons you learned as a young adult? Consider what you were going through and finding out around the age of 21—because that’s how old the Prophet Joseph Smith was as we begin our study of Doctrine and Covenants 3–5. In these sections, Joseph learned vital spiritual life lessons that all of us can learn from.
It had been three years since God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith, but he hadn’t received any additional revelations. He began to wonder whether the Lord was displeased with him. Like all of us, Joseph had made mistakes, and he felt condemned by them. In this week’s Come, Follow Me study of Joseph Smith History 1:27–65, we feel the relief that God is still there and has a work for all of us to do.
The Doctrine and Covenants is a book of questions and answers, and the Restoration came about because of one specific question. Our discussion of Joseph Smith History 1:1–26 centers on the historical background of Joseph’s life before his prayer in the grove. This context can help when we have questions and give us hope in a God that answers.
There’s just one section in the Come, Follow Me lesson this week and it is the Lord’s preface to the Doctrine and Covenants, D&C 1. Every section as we study this year will have eternal truths and we will make it our mission on this podcast to find them, starting with a lot of truth packed into this one powerful section. Happy New Year and let’s find truth together in 2025.
The Doctrine & Covenants is full of people with questions, and God giving answers with truth. And one of the eternal truths that we see the most is that God loves His children. In fact that is the first line in the Restoration Proclamation that was read in General Conference by President Nelson. To start our study of church history and the D&C we have five scholars to discuss their thoughts on that landmark proclamation.