Instagram story viewer> @restorationexplained> Posts

Restoration Explained

@restorationexplained

68

followers

56

following

Explaining the beliefs, history, and doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints through scripture and faith.

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

As we start transitioning into Phase 3: Church History, Restoration Explained is entering a new part of this journey.

So far, we have focused primarily on the doctrines and beliefs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: what Latter-day Saints believe, why we believe it, and how those beliefs relate to the Bible and restored scripture.

But understanding the Restoration also means understanding its history.

That means asking difficult questions. Some will be uncomfortable. Some will challenge assumptions. Some have been debated for generations. We are not going to hide from the difficult parts of our history. We are going to examine them carefully, honestly, and respectfully.

And Phase 3 is only the beginning.

Phase 4 will explore difficult questions in Church history, including plural marriage, Mountain Meadows, priesthood and race, the Nauvoo Expositor, Joseph Smith's revelations, early temple practices, the Book of Abraham, DNA and the Book of Mormon, and more.

Phase 5 will turn to difficult theological questions, including exaltation, the nature of God, Heavenly Mother, eternal progression, salvation, grace, ordinances, and other distinctive Latter-day Saint teachings.

Finally, Phase 6 will focus on defending the Restoration, addressing questions about Christianity, Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, archaeology, anachronisms, Isaiah, prophetic fallibility, faith and evidence, and continuing revelation.

The goal is not to avoid difficult questions or pretend they do not exist. The goal is understanding.

“Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” — John 8:32

#RestorationExplained #ChurchHistory #LDSHistory #LatterDaySaints #JesusChrist by @restorationexplained

3

0

19 days ago

Restoration Explained was created to foster meaningful conversations about faith, doctrine, history, and the Restoration—even when those conversations involve genuine disagreement.

People from many backgrounds encounter this page: Latter-day Saints, Roman Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox Christians, members of other faiths, and those who profess no religion at all. No one must agree with us to be treated with dignity here.

Criticizing an argument is not hatred. Challenging a doctrine is not harassment. Asking difficult questions is not disrespect. Strong disagreement is welcome.

Personal attacks, harassment, defamatory accusations, and rhetoric that vilifies individuals or entire groups are different.

Religious disagreement does not sanctify cruelty.

Christ taught, “Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12). Paul likewise taught us to do nothing through strife or pride, but to “esteem [the] other better than themselves” (Philippians 2:3).

Those principles do not cease to apply simply because we believe someone else is wrong.

Latter-day Saints can defend the Restoration while respecting those who reject it. Those who reject our beliefs can criticize them without demeaning those who hold them. Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox Christians, Latter-day Saints, other religious communities, and those without religious belief are all entitled to that same dignity.

Likewise, disagreement with Restoration Explained does not justify personal harassment of the people behind it.

We will continue discussing difficult subjects, answering criticism, examining history, defending Latter-day Saint beliefs, and welcoming sincere disagreement.

Challenge our arguments.
Question our conclusions.
Disagree with our beliefs.

But remember the human being on the other side of the screen.

Truth can withstand every question, for truth stands in the light of Christ. Hatred can never stand on the side of truth, for the moment we choose the weapons of the adversary, we depart from the way of Christ.

#RestorationExplained #Christianity #LatterDaySaints #ReligiousDialogue #ChristianLove by @restorationexplained

3

0

2 months ago

Welcome to Restoration Explained.

In a world where discussions about religion often become polarized, confusing, or focused more on differences than understanding, this page exists for a simple purpose: to explore the teachings, beliefs, and history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in a thoughtful, Christ-centered, and scripture-based way.

Whether you are a lifelong member of the Church, someone investigating the faith, a member of another Christian tradition, or simply someone curious about what Latter-day Saints believe, my hope is that this page will be a place where questions are welcomed and truth is pursued with charity and respect.

The journey begins with what Christians have in common. We'll discuss foundational topics such as who God is, the mission of Jesus Christ, the Atonement, faith, repentance, baptism, prayer, suffering, the Resurrection, and the Second Coming. These lessons are intended to build upon the shared beliefs that unite followers of Christ.

From there, we'll gradually explore teachings that are more distinctive to Latter-day Saints, including prophets and revelation, priesthood authority, temples, eternal families, salvation and exaltation, life after death, baptism for the dead, and God's eternal purposes for His children. These subjects are often misunderstood, and one of the goals of this page is to explain them clearly and in their proper context.

Finally, we'll examine the history of the Restoration itself. Together we'll look at Joseph Smith, the First Vision, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the restoration of priesthood authority, the early Saints, and the continuing growth of Christ's Church in our day.

My purpose is not to attack other faiths or win arguments. Rather, it is to invite sincere study, encourage faith in Jesus Christ, and help others better understand the message of the Restoration.

As the Savior taught:
"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32)

I hope you'll join me on this journey as we seek to understand our past, strengthen our faith, and share our hope.

#Jesus #Christian #LDS #Faith #Gospel by @restorationexplained

10

1

4 months ago

While translating the Book of Mormon in May 1829, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery encountered teachings about baptism for the remission of sins. Their study raised an important question: Who possessed authority to administer that ordinance?

They later testified that on May 15, 1829, they entered the woods near Harmony, Pennsylvania, and prayed for understanding. In response, a heavenly messenger appeared and identified himself as John the Baptist.

John placed his hands upon them and conferred the Priesthood of Aaron, which held the keys of the ministering of angels, the gospel of repentance, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins.

Why would John the Baptist be chosen?

His ancient ministry had centered on these same purposes. He preached repentance, baptized Jesus Christ, and prepared Israel to receive the Messiah. His return continued that preparatory calling, this time helping prepare the way for Christ’s restored Church.

After receiving this authority, Joseph baptized Oliver, and Oliver baptized Joseph. They did not merely claim a spiritual experience. They acted upon it by administering the ordinance they believed Christ had authorized them to perform.

The historical record requires some care. An early document written by Oliver in 1829 states that he had received authority from Jesus Christ to baptize. Joseph’s earliest surviving written reference to angelic priesthood ministry dates to 1832, while Oliver’s detailed published account identifying John appeared in 1834.

These documents cannot independently prove that a heavenly messenger appeared. They do demonstrate that Joseph and Oliver’s claim to restored authority became foundational to the movement they established.

For Latter-day Saints, John’s return teaches that sincere belief alone does not create divine authority. Christ calls, commissions, and authorizes His servants.

The Restoration began with the same invitation John had proclaimed anciently: repent, prepare to receive Jesus Christ, and enter His covenant through baptism.

#RestorationExplained #JohnTheBaptist #PriesthoodRestoration #ChurchHistory #JesusChrist by @restorationexplained

7

0

2 days ago

In June 1829, eleven men allowed their names to appear beneath two published testimonies concerning the Book of Mormon plates.

The Three Witnesses, Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris, testified that an angel showed them the plates and that they heard a divine voice confirming the translation.

The Eight Witnesses described a different experience. They said Joseph Smith showed them the plates, which they saw, handled, and “hefted.” Their testimony was physical rather than angelic.

These men were closely connected through friendship and family, and their statements should not be treated as eleven completely independent investigations. Nevertheless, their later histories make their persistence significant.

All Three eventually separated from Joseph Smith’s church. David Whitmer never returned, while Oliver Cowdery and Martin Harris eventually did. John Whitmer and Hiram Page, two of the Eight, also broke with Church leadership.

Despite these conflicts, no reliable firsthand document records any of the Eleven withdrawing his published testimony. Some later accounts debate whether particular experiences were physical, visionary, or both, but they do not provide a clear confession of fraud.

Their persistence does not independently prove that the plates were ancient, that an angel appeared, or that the translation came from God. Sincere people can interpret extraordinary experiences differently.

It does, however, weigh against the claim that the witnesses later admitted to participating in a deliberate hoax.

Their testimony deserves neither exaggeration nor dismissal. It is historical evidence to consider alongside the Book of Mormon itself, the surviving documents, and personal study.

#RestorationExplained #BookOfMormon #ElevenWitnesses #ChurchHistory #JosephSmith by @restorationexplained

3

1

4 days ago

Joseph Smith did not claim to translate the Book of Mormon by learning an ancient language and reading the plates line by line. He said the text was given “by the gift and power of God.”

Historical accounts describe Joseph using two kinds of instruments. One was a pair of stones found with the plates, called the “interpreters.” The other was a seer stone he had possessed before receiving the plates. Early Saints later used the biblical term “Urim and Thummim” for these instruments, sometimes interchangeably.

Emma Smith, Martin Harris, David Whitmer, and other witnesses described Joseph placing a stone or the interpreters inside a hat and looking into it to exclude outside light. He then dictated English words aloud while a scribe recorded them. The plates were sometimes covered nearby and were not always directly consulted during much of the dictation.

The surviving original manuscript supports an oral process. It contains errors suggesting that scribes occasionally misheard spoken words. Approximately 28 percent of that manuscript survives, while the later printer’s manuscript is nearly complete.

After the loss of the first 116 pages in 1828, almost all the present Book of Mormon was dictated between April and June 1829, primarily to Oliver Cowdery.

The documents allow us to reconstruct much of the physical procedure, but they cannot show what Joseph experienced within the stone. Faithful believers understand the words as revealed by God. Critics interpret the same process as oral composition.

History can describe the method. Whether it occurred by divine power remains a question of evidence, faith, and personal study.

#RestorationExplained #BookOfMormon #JosephSmith #ChurchHistory #LatterDaySaint by @restorationexplained

4

2

7 days ago

Joseph Smith left four firsthand accounts of his First Vision, recorded in 1832, 1835, 1838, and 1842. They are not identical.

The accounts differ in wording, emphasis, surrounding details, and intended audience. The 1832 account focuses heavily on Joseph’s concern for his sins and desire for forgiveness. The 1838 account emphasizes religious division and his question about which church he should join. Later accounts explicitly describe two personages, while the 1832 narrative speaks primarily of “the Lord” without stating that only one appeared.

These differences deserve examination, but a difference is not automatically a contradiction. A contradiction occurs when two claims cannot both be true in the same sense. Historical retellings often emphasize different details according to their purpose, audience, and setting.

The accounts also share a consistent foundation: Joseph was troubled about his spiritual condition and the religious world around him, he sought God through prayer, he experienced a divine manifestation, and he believed he received forgiveness and direction.

Honest faith does not require pretending every account uses the same language. Neither should it force explanations unsupported by the documents. Each account should be read completely, in its historical setting, rather than through isolated phrases.

The accounts offer different perspectives on the same claimed experience. Their variations invite careful study, while their shared core explains why Joseph continued testifying throughout his life that God had answered his prayer.

#RestorationExplained #FirstVision #JosephSmith #ChurchHistory #LatterDaySaint by @restorationexplained

1

0

10 days ago

Joseph Smith grew up amid intense religious activity in western New York. Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, and other Christians offered competing interpretations of scripture and salvation. His mother and several siblings associated with the Presbyterians, while Joseph felt “somewhat partial to the Methodist sect.”

Joseph’s accounts describe two connected concerns. His 1832 history emphasizes his awareness of sin, desire for forgiveness, and concern that existing churches had departed from New Testament Christianity. His 1838 account emphasizes the conflict among denominations and his desire to know which church he should join.

While reading the Bible, Joseph encountered James 1:5: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God.” Believing that God could answer sincere prayer, he decided to ask Him directly.

Joseph did not enter the grove intending to establish a new religion. He entered seeking forgiveness, wisdom, and direction. According to his testimony, the answer he received became the beginning of something much greater than the question he carried there.

The Restoration began with a young man taking scripture seriously enough to ask God what he should do, and believing that God might actually answer.

#RestorationExplained #JosephSmith #FirstVision #ChurchHistory #LDS by @restorationexplained

15

0

16 days ago

What does it truly mean to be a child of God?

Latter-day Saints believe every human being is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents. Our relationship with God is therefore more than that of creatures to a Creator. He is our Father, and His plan is designed to help His children become like Him through Jesus Christ.

Divine parentage does not mean we are already equal to God. A child begins life far less developed than a loving parent, yet carries the potential to grow in the parent’s likeness. In the same way, our heavenly origin gives us divine worth and eternal potential, but that potential can be realized only through Christ.

Scripture describes this destiny in remarkable language. Paul taught that faithful disciples are “children of God” and “heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:16–17). Peter wrote that we may become “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). John declared, “When he shall appear, we shall be like him” (1 John 3:2).

These promises involve more than simply living forever in a beautiful place. Through the grace of Christ, God offers His children resurrection, sanctification, glory, and a fulness of eternal life in His presence. Latter-day Saints call this promised inheritance exaltation.

Exaltation does not mean replacing Heavenly Father, becoming independent of Him, or competing with Him for worship. God’s children do not become the Father. They become like Him while preserving their identity, eternally honoring Him, and remaining dependent upon Jesus Christ.

This doctrine is sometimes reduced to the caricature that Latter-day Saints expect to “get their own planet.” That phrase does not adequately describe the doctrine. The scriptural promise is far deeper: to inherit with Christ, share in divine life, become holy as God is holy, and participate eternally in His work of love.

Lesson 34 explained how Christ transforms our character. This lesson explains where that transformation is leading.

We are not destined merely to stand near God. Through Jesus Christ, we may become like our Heavenly Father and inherit the fulness of life He desires to share with His children.

#RestorationExplained #ChildOfGod by @restorationexplained

1

0

17 days ago

What does it mean to become like our Heavenly Father?

Jesus commanded His disciples, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). This was not a demand that imperfect mortals immediately become incapable of making mistakes. It was an invitation to become spiritually complete and mature through Him.

The surrounding verses explain what that looks like. Jesus taught His disciples to love their enemies, bless those who cursed them, and pray for those who persecuted them. Luke recorded the same teaching with the command, “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36).

Becoming like God is first a transformation of character.

Our Heavenly Father is perfectly loving, holy, patient, just, merciful, and faithful. Jesus Christ revealed those attributes through His mortal life. As we follow Christ, we gradually learn to think, choose, love, forgive, and serve as He does.

This change cannot be accomplished through willpower alone. Paul taught that we are changed into Christ’s image “from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18). The grace of Christ does more than forgive our past. It gives us power to become different.

Our choices still matter. We exercise faith, repent, make covenants, serve others, and resist sin. These efforts do not purchase God’s grace or make us holy independently of Christ. They are how we willingly receive His grace and cooperate with the work He is performing within us.

This transformation is rarely immediate. God patiently shapes us through repeated repentance, covenant faithfulness, service, sacrifice, and the influence of the Holy Ghost. Mortal weakness does not mean the process has failed. It gives us continuing opportunities to depend upon Christ.

Becoming like Heavenly Father does not mean replacing Him or becoming independent of Him. It means becoming the kind of people who reflect His character and can live in complete harmony with His will.

God does not merely want better-behaved children. Through Jesus Christ, He is raising children who increasingly resemble Him.

#RestorationExplained #BecomingLikeGod #JesusChrist #LDS by @restorationexplained

4

0

17 days ago

This weekend, October 3–4, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will hold its 196th Semiannual General Conference. Four sessions will be held across Saturday and Sunday, at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM MDT each day.

General Conference is a worldwide gathering where living prophets and apostles of Jesus Christ, along with other Church leaders, share messages centered on Jesus Christ and His Gospel. These messages address faith, repentance, discipleship, family, service, hope, and the challenges we face in our daily lives.

General Conference is not only for members of the Church. Anyone is welcome to listen, regardless of religious background or sectarian allegiance. Whether you are a lifelong Latter-day Saint, a Christian from another tradition, a member of another faith, or simply curious about what Latter-day Saints believe, we invite you to come, listen, and consider the messages for yourself.

Join us this weekend as we turn our hearts toward Jesus Christ and seek to learn from His teachings.

#GeneralConference #JesusChrist #LatterDaySaints #RestorationExplained #ComeUntoChrist by @restorationexplained

0

0

18 days ago

What happens to us after death but before resurrection?

Latter-day Saints believe death separates the spirit from the mortal body. The body returns to the earth, while the spirit continues to live in the spirit world and awaits the resurrection.

Alma taught that the spirits of the righteous enter “a state of happiness, which is called paradise,” while the unrepentant experience darkness, fear, and remorse (Alma 40:11–14). Paradise and spirit prison describe differing conditions within the spirit world. They are not the final kingdoms of glory.

The spirit world is also a place where Christ’s redemptive work continues. Peter wrote that Jesus “went and preached unto the spirits in prison” and that the gospel was “preached also to them that are dead” (1 Peter 3:19; 4:6).

Doctrine and Covenants 138 explains that after His death, Christ appeared to the righteous dead and organized messengers to proclaim redemption to those in darkness. This includes people who died without receiving a meaningful opportunity to understand and accept the gospel.

This does not mean everyone is automatically saved after death. The dead retain their agency. They may hear and accept the gospel, but salvation remains possible only through Jesus Christ, repentance, and willingly receiving what He offers.

It also does not mean that spirits return to earth for additional mortal lives. The spirit world is not reincarnation, nor is it the final judgment. Every person will eventually be resurrected, reunited permanently with a perfected body, and brought before Christ.

God’s plan ensures that death cannot deprive someone of a genuine opportunity to hear the gospel. No one will be condemned merely because they were born in the wrong place, lived at the wrong time, or died without knowing the name of Jesus Christ.

Death separates the spirit from the body. Resurrection reunites them forever. Between those events, the dead still live, the gospel is still proclaimed, and the mercy of Jesus Christ continues to reach God’s children.

#RestorationExplained #SpiritWorld #Resurrection #JesusChrist #PlanOfSalvation by @restorationexplained

3

0

20 days ago