Elder Linder

Part 3 of “The Living Foundation: Prophets in Christ’s Church”

In our previous posts, we explored how Christ established His Church on the foundation of prophets and apostles, and how ancient prophets foresaw a temporary period when this foundation would be lost. Today, we’ll examine how the Lord preserved essential truths through faithful Christians during this period, even as the fullness of the gospel waited in the wilderness for its promised restoration.

In the book of Revelation, John shares a powerful vision: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars. This woman—representing Christ’s Church—flees into the wilderness, where God has prepared a place for her (Revelation 12:1, 6). This symbolic imagery perfectly captures what happened to Christ’s Church in the centuries following the deaths of the apostles. Importantly, the woman wasn’t destroyed—she was preserved in the wilderness until the time of restoration.

During this period, the Lord ensured that essential truths about salvation through Jesus Christ were preserved. Faithful Christians, though lacking the fullness of the gospel, maintained their conviction of Christ’s divine mission, His atoning sacrifice, and His role as the world’s Savior. Through their dedicated efforts, what became the Bible was preserved, copied, and eventually translated into many languages, allowing the basic truths of Christ’s gospel to spread throughout the world.

The preservation and transmission of scripture during this period was extraordinary. Devoted monks spent countless hours meticulously copying sacred texts. Scholars risked their lives to translate the Bible into common languages. These efforts, guided by the Lord’s hand, ensured that sufficient foundational truths would remain recognizable.

Even without prophets and apostles to guide the Church, the Lord ensured that many vital elements of Christianity endured:

1. While direct revelation through prophets ceased, personal spiritual experiences continued
2. Though some doctrines were changed, core truths about Christ’s redemptive mission endured
3. Though priesthood authority was lost, sincere worship and devotion to God continued
4. Despite differing interpretations, a common faith in Christ’s saving power remained

Throughout this period, countless individuals maintained deep faith in Christ. Their preserved writings, hymns, and testimonies witness their sincere devotion. Many recognized that something was missing from Christianity, yet they served God according to the best knowledge they had. Their faithful efforts helped preserve Christianity until the time of restoration.

Yet even in this period of reduced light, the Lord’s hand was evident. The spread of Christianity, despite its incomplete form, prepared the way for the eventual restoration. Many noble men and women recognized that something was wrong and worked to reform what they could. Reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin, and others made valiant efforts to correct errors they saw. But as they themselves acknowledged, they could only work with the authority they had—which wasn’t the apostolic authority Christ had established.

This understanding helps us appreciate why the Restoration through Joseph Smith was necessary. Just as the woman in John’s vision was promised a return from the wilderness, the Lord promised that He would eventually restore His Church with all its foundational elements intact.

I testify that understanding the Great Apostasy isn’t about criticizing others or diminishing their sincere beliefs. Rather, it helps us appreciate why a restoration—not just a reformation—was necessary. The same God who foresaw and foretold the apostasy also promised a restoration, which we’ll explore in our next post.