“Jesus Christ’s Church Is Restored,” Friend, April 2020
Jesus Christ’s Church Is Restored!
Illustrations by Apryl Stott
Before we came to earth, we lived with our heavenly parents. They loved us! Heavenly Father had a wonderful plan for us. We would come to earth so we could get a body and learn and grow. Then we could come back to live in our heavenly home. But we couldn’t do it on our own. We would need help.
Heavenly Father chose our oldest brother, Jesus Christ, to come to earth to help us. Jesus showed us how to love others and follow Heavenly Father’s commandments. He chose Apostles to lead His Church.
Then Jesus suffered for us in the Garden of Gethsemane. He felt all of our pains and sadness. He died for us on the cross. Because of this, we can turn to Him when we are hurt or sad or need help. We can repent when we do something wrong.
On the third day after Jesus died, He was resurrected. Jesus was alive again! Because of this, we will be resurrected too. We can live with our heavenly parents after we die.
After His Resurrection, Jesus visited His disciples in Jerusalem and in the Americas. He asked His Apostles to keep teaching people about His gospel. Many people who heard the Apostles were baptized and joined the Church.
After the Apostles died, people began forgetting some important parts of Jesus’s gospel. They stopped believing that Heavenly Father would always inspire His children on earth. They forgot that everyone on earth would have a chance to be baptized. They stopped believing that prophets and apostles would always lead the Church.
Many years passed. Finally, it was time to bring back the missing parts of Jesus’s gospel. It was time to restore His Church! Heavenly Father needed someone to be a prophet and help bring it back to earth. He chose a young boy named Joseph Smith.
One day, Joseph was reading the Bible. In James 1:5, it said that Heavenly Father will answer our questions when we ask in faith. Joseph did have a question! He knew there were many churches that taught about Jesus. But he wanted to find out if there was one like Jesus’s Church in the New Testament.
On a beautiful spring day around Easter time, Joseph went to the woods near his home. He knelt and started to pray. Then Joseph felt a dark feeling. Satan was trying to discourage him. But Joseph kept praying with all his might.
Then a beautiful light came down. Joseph saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. This is called the First Vision. They said that Jesus’s Church wasn’t on the earth. But it would be soon. The Restoration was beginning!
Heavenly Father sent angels to restore important parts of the gospel. The angel Moroni gave Joseph the gold plates so we could have the Book of Mormon to help us learn about Jesus Christ.
John the Baptist brought the Aaronic Priesthood back so we could be baptized. Peter, James, and John brought the Melchizedek Priesthood so we could receive the Holy Ghost and have blessings when we are sick.
Elijah came so we could be sealed to our families in the temple.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized. That means Jesus’s Church is back on earth! All of these things are part of the Restoration.
The Restoration of the gospel is still going on today. Prophets, apostles, and missionaries are sharing the good news of Jesus Christ all over the world. Temples are being built in many lands so people can be sealed to their families forever. And the Church is helping people in places where there is hunger or disaster.
Everyone can do something to help with the Restoration. You can help by learning about your family history and doing temple baptisms. You can give tithing to build churches and temples. You can give fast offerings to help people in need. You can tell people about Jesus Christ.
Jesus gave us His Church to help us return to our heavenly parents. We can take the sacrament and always remember what He did for us. We can show love to others, as He did. We can help everyone learn about His gospel!