The Church of God Prototype
Having looked carefully at the substance of the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost,
we will now consider its operation in relation to the church of God as exemplified in the
Book of Mormon. Moroni tells us that they did not "receive any unto baptism save they
came forth with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, and witnessed unto the church that
they truly repented of all their sins. And none were received unto baptism save they took
upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end." (Moro.
6:2,3.) Note as the account continues that the wording suggests that the physical
ordinance alone did not suffice for membership. Not until "after they had been
received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by
the power of the Holy Ghost," were they "numbered among the people of the
church of Christ." (Moro. 6:4.) The definition of the essence of the church of God,
such as is set forth in Doctrine and Covenants section ten, concurs with this standard:
"Behold, this is my doctrine -- whosoever repenteth and cometh unto me, the same
is my church." (D&C 10:67.) Christ's injunction to "come unto me"
encompasses the baptism of water and of the Spirit. (See, for example, JST-John 7:37-39.)
Being even more specific regarding the only legitimate definition of his church, Christ
told his Nephite disciples, "...It is my church, if it so be that they are built upon
my gospel." (3 Ne. 27:8.) Doctrine and Covenants section ten goes on to say,
"Whosoever declareth more or less than this, the same is not of me, but is against
me; therefore he is not of my church." (10:68.) The Lord then reiterates his promise,
saying, "Whosoever is of my church, and endureth of my church to the end, him will I
establish upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them."
(10:68,69.) This repeated promise of the doctrine of Christ makes it clear that the
ushering in of Christ's millennial reign will see a people who finally fully implement the
doctrine of Christ, so that it may be said, "Because of the righteousness of his
people, Satan has no power; wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years;
for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and
the Holy One of Israel reigneth." (1 Ne. 22:26.)
The apostolic function in relation to the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost is also
valuable to note. Before closing the abridgement of the Book of Mormon, Moroni saw fit to
give us the account of the Savior's bestowal upon the twelve disciples the power to bestow
the Holy Ghost. It says "he laid his hands upon them" and "called them by
name, saying: Ye shall call on the Father in my name, in mighty prayer; and after ye have
done this ye shall have power that to him upon whom ye shall lay your hands, ye shall give
the Holy Ghost; and in my name shall ye give it, for thus do mine apostles."
(Moro. 2:1,2.) They were not slack in carrying out this injunction, for the record says of
the twelve disciples that "on as many as they laid their hands, fell the Holy
Ghost." (Moro. 2:3.) "And it came to pass that the disciples whom Jesus had
chosen began from that time forth to baptize and to teach as many as did come unto them;
and as many as were baptized in the name of Jesus were filled with the Holy Ghost.
And many of them saw and heard unspeakable things, which are not lawful to be written. And
they taught, and did minister one to another; and they had all things common among them,
every man dealing justly, one with another. And they who were baptized in the name of
Jesus were called the church of Christ." (3 Ne. 26:17-19,21.) While nine of
these disciples were taken home to that God who gave them breath when they arrived at the
appointed age, the three Nephites, who were blessed that they would not taste of death but
were permitted to tarry, carried on this great work. From the beginning of their new
calling, "they did go forth upon the face of the land, and did minister unto all the
people, uniting as many to the church as would believe in their preaching; baptizing them,
and as many as were baptized did receive the Holy Ghost." (3 Ne. 28:18; also
4 Ne. 1:1.) With the power of the doctrine of Christ now upon them, no wonder the people
of this era of Book of Mormon history enjoyed nearly 200 years of a millennial-like
existence. They were built upon the rock, so Satan had no power over them.
In Christ's words to the twelve disciples at the time he bestowed upon them power to
give the Holy Ghost, the phrase, "for thus do mine apostles" (Moro. 2:2), gives
us insight into the early apostolic labors in the Old World, and sheds light on why they
too experienced a time in which "they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,
and they spake the word of God with boldness; and the multitude of them that believed were
of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he
possessed was his own; but they had all things common." (Acts 4:31,32.) The New
Testament account also verifies the Savior's injunction to the twelve Nephite disciples in
the manner of bestowing the Holy Ghost. Recall that they were to first "call on the
Father in my name, in mighty prayer; and after ye have done this
ye shall have power that to him upon whom ye shall lay your hands, ye shall give the
Holy Ghost." (Moro. 2:2.) The phrase "mighty prayer" is used sparingly
in the scriptures (as will be explored in greater depth later), and should not be taken
lightly. "Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had
received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: who, when they were come
down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (for as
yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the
Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost."
(Acts 8:14-17.)
In these latter days as well, the Lord has said that the apostles are called "to
baptize; and to ordain other elders, priests, teachers, and deacons; and to confirm those
who are baptized into the church, by the laying on of hands for the baptism of fire
and the Holy Ghost, according to the scriptures." (D&C 20:38,39,41.) We find
in Parley P. Pratt a valuable model of this apostolic injunction. His very conversion to
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was rooted in his thirst for the doctrine
of Christ which he saw absent in the Christian denominations of the day. In the prime of
his young adulthood, he left all his worldly comforts to begin preaching the doctrine and
of its obfuscation in the various sects, and it was in the midst of this ministry that he
first came across the newly organized Church. He was baptized and immediately ordained an
elder, and later was called as an apostle, continuing his ministry but now able to
proclaim the glad tidings of the restored gospel. As he went forth in his labors, the Holy
Ghost fell upon those who received the ordinances of baptism and the laying on of hands;
and signs followed them that believed. This is what he had sought -- nothing more or
less -- and this is what he found in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. (See Autobiography
of Parley P. Pratt, Deseret Book, S.L.C., UT, 1985.)
