The resurrected Jesus Christ preaching to spirits in the spirit world. Painting by Robert T. Barrett. Intellectual Reserve, Inc.

ABSTRACT: Bret A. Bowcutt examines Doctrine and Covenants section 138, highlighting its Christ-centered message that is often overshadowed by historical or contextual studies. Rather than focusing on President Joseph F. Smith’s personal circumstances, this article explores how the revelation reveals the Savior’s infinite love, the scope of his Atonement, and his redemptive work among the dead. It underscores that section 138 is not merely about the spirit world but about Christ’s relentless pursuit of all God’s children through his Atonement and the gathering of Israel. Readers are invited to ponder its language deeply and see in it a profound witness of the Redeemer’s mercy and mission.

KEYWORDS: Doctrine and Covenants 138 · Joseph F. Smith · Atonement of Jesus Christ · redemption of the dead · gathering of Israel

Discussions about section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants often focus on our Lord’s visit to the spirit world. As humans, we are innately and deeply curious about life after death. It is no wonder that we are drawn to this topic. Much has been written about the spirit world and the work going on there. This is important doctrinal detail. Section 138 is a rich repository of revealed truth about the spirit world, our next home. However, President Joseph F. Smith opens his account of this revelation by writing, “I sat in my room pondering over the scriptures; and reflecting upon the great atoning sacrifice that was made by the Son of God, for the redemption of the world; and the great and wonderful love made manifest by the Father and the Son in the coming of the Redeemer into the world; that through his atonement, and by obedience to the principles of the gospel, mankind might be saved” (D&C 138:1–4). Most of the first four verses of this revelation focuses on the Atonement of Jesus Christ. President Smith seems fixed on the “wonderful love manifest by the Father and the Son in the coming of the Redeemer into the world.” This revelation communicates so much about the Atonement and our Savior’s desire to share this love with all his children. We must not let this message be obscured by a focus on other things, as important and interesting as they may be.

In most commentaries on section 138, scholars and others recount the effects of death and loss experienced in the life of our dear prophet Joseph F. Smith. This is important and laudable work. It inspires a sense for the reason this revelation came when it did. A focus on the life and history of President Smith can also inspire in us a desire to serve as faithfully and as enduringly as he did and to be hopeful when facing the loss of loved ones and other trials. Further, this focus may persuade us to slow down and ponder the word of our Lord as he was doing when this series of visions came to him. All these efforts are positive and helpful. In this article I intend to leave that type of context work to others and focus on something that is remarkably uncommon in the available literature. To be specific, there is notably little commentary on how powerfully and beautifully Christ centered is section 138, the revelation on the redemption of the dead.

President M. Russell Ballard didn’t miss this. In October 2018 he spoke about this revelation in general conference. Toward the end of his address, after detailing the relevant history, he said: “I invite you to thoroughly and thoughtfully read this revelation. As you do so, may the Lord bless you to more fully understand and appreciate God’s love and His plan of salvation and happiness for His children.”[1] Certainly, the most important manifestation of the love of God is the Atonement of Jesus Christ. President Ballard seemed to want us to leave a study of this revelation appreciating more deeply God’s love. The history surrounding the revelation and the language in Doctrine and Covenants 138 reveals much about our Savior and his love for us. This revelation beautifully demonstrates Jesus’s desire to share his Atonement with all his children through temple ordinances. Prophets have taught this.

The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead.”[2]

President Russell M. Nelson taught: “Let us never lose sight of what the Lord is doing for us now. He is making His temples more accessible. He is accelerating the pace at which we are building temples. He is increasing our ability to help gather Israel.” He further declared, “Anytime you do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—take a step toward making covenants with God and receiving their essential baptismal and temple ordinances, you are helping to gather Israel. It is as simple as that.”[3]

He later taught: “The temple lies at the center of strengthening our faith and spiritual fortitude because the Savior and His doctrine are the very heart of the temple. Everything taught in the temple, through instruction and through the Spirit, increases our understanding of Jesus Christ. His essential ordinances bind us to Him through sacred priesthood covenants. Then, as we keep our covenants, He endows us with His healing, strengthening power. And oh, how we will need His power in the days ahead.”[4]

There seems to be an acceleration of revelation and of endowments of power in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are becoming more Christ centered. We are more focused on him, and there is a growing momentum which is preparing us for his return. For those with eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts that know and feel,[5] he is revealing himself through scripture. He is revealing himself through ordinances. He is binding himself to us as we make and keep covenants. President Nelson taught: “Whatever questions or problems you have, the answer is always found in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Learn more about His Atonement, His love, His mercy.”[6] As we seek sincerely to follow this counsel, we will be drawn to the temple, and there “every sincere seeker of Jesus Christ will find Him.”[7]

In every substantial block of scripture there is a place, sometimes more than one, where Jesus reveals something about himself. We must relentlessly seek to see these and assist our students in seeing them. We should also, then, get out of the way and allow our students to be with him as they ponder what he is revealing so that he and they can commune together. He will teach them. He will edify them and endow them with the gifts and powers they will need for their particular challenges and missions in life.

He is a being so immensely powerful and merciful that his attributes are beyond our comprehension. One of the names of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Old Testament is the Tetragrammaton, YHWH, or I AM. A careful study of this name teaches much about his eternally existing power. This immensely powerful being is gathering his people. This gathering seems to be an eternal movement in his soul. Doctrine and Covenants section 138 further illustrates his persistent, efforts to rescue us; all of us, on both sides of the veil. As Elder Patrick Kearon taught, the Lord “is in relentless pursuit of” us.[8]

What President Smith witnessed and shared with us reveals much about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. There is a compression of language in scripture that allows layers of truth to be folded together in a way that contains both breadth and depth. I am persistently impressed by the amount of truth that is pressed down, shaken together and running over in the language of scriptures. Join me in considering what President Smith revealed especially about Jesus Christ and his Atonement in Doctrine and Covenants section 138. In this exercise let us slow down and allow ourselves to soak in the words of this revelation. We may see more there in an unhurried setting than otherwise. Following will be direct quotations from section 138 and questions intended to further our consideration of what President Smith was thinking and what was being revealed.

“And reflecting upon the great atoning sacrifice that was made by the Son of God, for the redemption of the world” (D&C 138:2).

What was he contemplating exactly? What was he viewing spiritually? What do you see here? Consider what President Smith knew about what was happening in the world in 1918 and what our Savior could do about it.

President Ballard taught: “That year was particularly painful for him [President Joseph F. Smith]. He grieved over the death toll in the Great World War that continued to climb to over 20 million people killed. Additionally, a flu pandemic was spreading around the world, taking the lives of as many as 100 million people.”[9]

We suppose that President Smith was hoping and praying for those whose lives were affected by the war and the pandemic. As prophet, he must have felt some responsibility for them. He was likely also thinking about his own lost loved ones. While it is true that the whole world was reeling with the effects of war and illness, this revelation affects so much more than the needs of that moment. Specifically, our Redeemer’s suffering satisfied the demands of justice for so much more than those proximate problems even as enormous as they were. The language used by President Smith in this revelation does not confine itself to the problems proximate to him. This revelation reaches out across time in both directions and draws all humanity into the fold of God’s love.

What is the Atonement of Jesus Christ? How much does his Atonement comprehend? How far do the endowments of love through the Atonement of Jesus Christ reach; and how deep? What does our Savior offer through his Atonement and how far-reaching is the promise?

Verse 3 offers a similar opportunity for pondering and revelation: “And the great and wonderful love made manifest by the Father and the Son in the coming of the Redeemer into the world.”

What is President Smith pondering here? What soul-enlarging truths does this verse encompass?

This verse not only considers the Garden of Gethsemane and the cross, but all our Lord’s wonderful life. If we had a complete record of his life, ministry, and Atonement, “I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written” (John 21:25).

What do you see when you ponder this? Who do you know that would benefit by feeling this from him? What more would you like to know about him, his life, his ministry? What was he like as a child? What was his relationship with Mary, with Joseph?

Do we think we should hurry past these things? Or should we slow down and allow them to sink into our souls? What are the questions of your soul about our Savior’s life, his ministry, his Atonement for death and for sin?

Verse 4: “That through his atonement, and by obedience to the principles of the gospel, mankind might be saved.”

I believe this verse defines and summarizes the truths contained in the rest of section 138. In this verse Jesus asserts that humankind might be saved through his Atonement. This expansive offer invites us to see beyond our own proximate problems and to view the earth and all its inhabitants from beginning to end. The next verses illustrate precisely this happening to President Smith.

Ministry Among the Righteous

His reflections led him to open the Bible and consider the words of Peter. In 1 Peter 3:18 he read, “Christ also hath once suffered, . . . that he might bring us to God.” Then, President Smith journeyed scripturally with Peter to the spirit world. As he pondered that setting, “the eyes of [his] understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon [him], and [he] saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great” (D&C 138:11). President Smith saw in vision “an innumerable company of the spirits of the just” (v. 12). He witnessed that vast company of faithful Saints “firm in the hope of a glorious resurrection” (v. 14), “filled with joy and gladness” (v. 15) and “rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand” (v. 15). Some of them had awaited this moment for millennia. They had all looked forward with anxious expectation for this time. The day of their deliverance had arrived! It is difficult to imagine the level of joy and gladness that swelled over this gathering. How many devoted people were there? How great is this multitude of righteous saints? President Smith called it “an innumerable company” (v. 12).

In his description of the visit of John the Baptist, Oliver Cowdery gushed exuberantly. To illustrate the feelings of his heart, he wrote, “What joy! What wonder! What amazement!”[10] If these words describe Oliver’s joy on that occasion, what words could possibly capture the feelings of joy and gladness experienced by the saints in the spirit world as they anticipated Jesus’s appearing to them, knowing that this was it. The day of their deliverance had arrived. Then multiply that joy by however many of them were there that day.

The Crucifixion of Christ, artist unknown. Intellectual Reserve, Inc.

As they gathered, on one side of the veil, the Lord Jesus Christ was just finishing his sufferings for them on the other. His last recorded words in mortality were “It is finished” (John 19:30). And “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46). In all the words of scripture we currently possess, there may not be language more compressed than these two comments. How much truth is contained in these two statements made by our Lord as he completes this all-important phase of his glorious eternity? This language is worth long, thoughtful, inspired pondering.

After speaking these words, his mortal body “gave up the ghost” (John 19:30). Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught, “As the peace and comfort of a merciful death freed Him from the pains and sorrows of mortality, he entered the paradise of God.”[11] These words have reverberated in my soul for decades. Death must have been so sweet for our Savior. Elder McConkie’s words “peace and comfort” likely do not adequately comprehend the powerful release that death provided for our Savior. It was finished. He fought the fight and drank the bitter cup to the dregs. The battle was won. He unwearyingly allowed his will to be swallowed up in the will of our Father in Heaven. He commended his spirit entirely, absolutely, into the hands of his Father in Heaven.

Sometime after “death freed him from the pains and sorrows of mortality, he entered the paradise of God.” Awaiting him there was that assembly of his righteous friends. This must have been a wonderful time! I have wondered how much this experience for him and for them was like his appearing at the temple in the land of Bountiful in the Book of Mormon. I wonder if he first moved among them, loving them, embracing them, allowing them to deeply celebrate his presence. There are some interesting parallels. For example, in 3 Nephi 19 we read, “Jesus blessed them as they did pray unto him; and his countenance did smile upon them, and the light of his countenance did shine upon them, and behold they were as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus; and behold the whiteness thereof did exceed all the whiteness” (3 Nephi 19:25). For those worshippers there was a communion and a union of souls that caused his power, his light, and his countenance and theirs to become one.

In section 138, verses 18 and 24, we read: “While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful; . . . their countenances shone, and the radiance from the presence of the Lord rested upon them, and they sang praises unto his holy name.”

Like the worshippers in the Americas, the uniting of their faith and love with his invited them to receive light, radiance, and power. They were endowed with his power and light. Without further revelation, we cannot know now the details of their rejoicings. However, pondering his love for them and the outpouring of his newly won atoning power is inspiring. How long they rejoiced together and what passed between them is an exciting mystery. To borrow words from Oliver Cowdery, “while the world [is] racked and distracted—while millions [are] groping as the blind for the wall,”[12] we find hope, surety, and increased faith as we contemplate his time with them there.

Ministry to the Wicked

“Unto whomsoever much given, much shall be required” (Luke 12:48). Now that these faithful Saints in the spirit world had received love, power, and union with the Savior, it was time to go to work.

Doctrine and Covenants 138:30: “But behold, from among the righteous, he organized his forces and appointed messengers, clothed with power and authority, and commissioned them to go forth and carry the light of the gospel to them that were in darkness, even to all the spirits of men; and thus was the gospel preached to the dead.”

And so, they went to work. They “preached to those who died in their sins.” They “were taught faith in God, repentance from sin, vicarious baptism for the remission of sins, the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands.” They were also taught, “that redemption had been wrought through the sacrifice of the Son of God upon the cross” (D&C 138:35). This doctrine of Christ is the standard of truth. The Lord Jesus Christ gave his life that we might be saved. We find access to him and his Atonement through faith in Jesus Christ, baptism for the remission of sins, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and continuing with a brightness of hope (2 Nephi 31:20) and faith in him. While they were together that day, a refresher course in the gospel and how to teach this hope-giving good news was given by the Savior of the world to the faithful spirits in the spirit world.

Thus, our Lord Jesus Christ prepared them to go and gather the rest of his children. We read, “Thus was it made known that our Redeemer spent his time during his sojourn in the world of spirits, instructing and preparing the faithful spirits of the prophets who had testified of him in the flesh; That they might carry the message of redemption unto all the dead, . . . that they through the ministration of his servants might also hear his words” (D&C 138:36).

When Elder Patrick Kearon taught, “God is in relentless pursuit of you,”[13] the cynical may have scoffed. Some may have thought, God doesn’t pursue. This account of Christ organizing the work of salvation and gathering in the spirit world seems to support Elder Kearon’s assertion. This work of the gathering seems to be an eternal movement in the soul of Jesus Christ, our Master. In the words of President Nelson, “This gathering is the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, and the greatest work on earth today!”[14]

As he contemplated the scene before him, President Smith noticed that “among the great and mighty ones who were assembled in this vast congregation of the righteous” (D&C 138:38), many of the greatest prophets and women were present. After listing them, he wrote, “These the Lord taught, and gave them power to come forth, after his resurrection from the dead, to enter into his Father’s kingdom, there to be crowned with immortality and eternal life” (D&C 138:51). This bestowal of power is mentioned almost as a passing comment. One of the striking features in scripture is that eternally consequential actions are described with little, often zero fanfare. These two gifts, to come forth in the Resurrection and to be crowned with immortality and eternal life, are to my understanding the highest, grandest gifts in eternity. These represent the endowment of the greatest gifts available through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I wonder what it feels like to arrive at a place where the Savior of humankind delivers these gifts to a person. This is another place in this grand revelation where we may do well to pause and ponder.

Yet it seems like the President Smith and those great and mighty Saints in the spirit world seem content to move forward quickly and get on with the work before them. Perhaps this is what distinguishes the great ones from others. People, beings of this caliber, seem so engaged in the work that while they deeply feel the love of the Savior, they cannot be content for long to bask in the moment. I was once studying the gift of charity. As I considered “the pure love of Christ” (Moroni 7:47), I thought that this gift requires a person to empty his soul of selfishness and to fill the void with the needs of others. When acting with faith in Christ and emptying ourselves of self, the Lord will help fill us with desires to serve.

In the process of contemplating this, I thought of something I hadn’t before. It came to me in the form of a question: “What gift could you possibly give to a person whose heart is full of charity that would feel satisfying to him or her?” I can think of only one answer. The only gift that would please a being or person filled with charity is another opportunity to serve. I wonder if this explains in part what happens here in this revelation. Christ bestows the power to come forth crowned with immortality and eternal life upon these Saints in the spirit world. Then without much more, the revelation moves on to describe the work they are doing to gather Israel.

This marvelous vision ends in the following way. “I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption, through the sacrifice of the Only Begotten Son of God, among those who are in darkness and under the bondage of sin in the great world of the spirits of the dead. The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God, and after they have paid the penalty of their transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to their works, for they are heirs of salvation. Thus was the vision of the redemption of the dead” (D&C 138:57–60).

In no uncertain terms, President Joseph F. Smith concludes his account of the vision simply by declaring that faithful elders who spent their lives in mortality serving, loving, and teaching the gospel will continue to do so after death in the world of spirits. This is my experience with the gospel. I have felt the loving encouragement and embrace of Jesus Christ in my life. I have experienced his succor. I am also witness that when I ask sincerely, he always has work for me to do. This seems to be no different for our Savior. He finished his atoning sacrifice then moved into the spirit world to love, lift, encourage, and bless the righteous there. Then he organized them to go rescue those in prison.

The revelation recounted in section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants invites us to wade wholeheartedly into the work of the gathering. It reveals how much is at stake and suggests how many souls need this work. Honest consideration of this revelation expects us to stand up and press our shoulders into the work of salvation. It may be impossible to overstate the importance and urgency of this work.

President Nelson pleaded with us to catch the vision of this great work. He taught: “Let us never lose sight of what the Lord is doing for us now. He is making His temples more accessible. He is accelerating the pace at which we are building temples. He is increasing our ability to help gather Israel.” He added: “Anytime you do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—take a step toward making covenants with God and receiving their essential baptismal and temple ordinances, you are helping to gather Israel. It is as simple as that. That gathering is the most important thing taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude, nothing else compares in importance, nothing else compares in majesty.”[15]

The Doctrine and Covenants teaches, “When men are called unto mine everlasting gospel, and covenant with an everlasting covenant, they are accounted as the salt of the earth and the savor of men; they are called to be the savor of men; therefore, if that salt of the earth lose its savor, behold, it is thenceforth good for nothing only to be cast out and trodden under the feet of men” (D&C 101:39–40). A cursory reading of this may cause us to talk only about not sinning and thereby polluting ourselves as representatives of the Lord. However, two sections later we read verses similar, but more emphatic: “For they were set to be a light unto the world, and to be the saviors of men; and inasmuch as they are not the saviors of men, they are as salt that has lost its savor, and is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men” (D&C 103:9–10; emphasis added).

In other words, we have been invited to engage in the work of the gathering. This is the most important work on the earth today. At the close of October 2022 general conference, President Nelson invited Church members around the globe to “focus on the temple in ways you never have before.” Spending more time in the temple, he said earlier in the conference, is one way to find rest—or peace—from the challenges of today’s world. “My plea to you this morning is to find rest from the intensity, uncertainty and anguish of this world by overcoming the world through your covenants with God.”[16] He later declared: “Let us never lose sight of what the Lord is doing for us now. He is making His temples more accessible. He is accelerating the pace at which we are building temples. He is increasing our ability to help gather Israel. He is also making it easier for each of us to become spiritually refined. I promise that increased time in the temple will bless your life in ways nothing else can.”[17]

Because all this is true, we have much to do, “and inasmuch as they are not the saviors of men, they are as salt that has lost its savor, and is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.” We are invited to be saviors of men. It is critical to note that the lowercase is used in this word savior. There is only one Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He worked out our salvation in his life, ministry, and great Atonement. He invites us to participate with him in this work of gathering all God’s children back into his loving, saving arms.

Notwithstanding the import of the work we must do and our invitation to assist in this work, section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants invites us to witness him loving, blessing, and pouring out his Atonement on his people. This glorious revelation offers another witness of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, adding to our understanding of what he did for us and how he is working to assure that all his children may have access to it. If we will slow down and consider, this revelation will reveal much about him.

I am personally grateful for God’s word as found in the holy scriptures. We have a witness of Jesus Christ because over decades of scripture study we have learned from the writings of prophets. The holy scriptures welcome us into the world and lives of prophets, priests, and kings. When we study the scriptures, we can learn by the Holy Spirit the things learned by prophets, both ancient and modern. I have learned with Nephi and Lehi lessons from the vision of the tree of life (1 Nephi 8; 11–15). I have wondered at the majesty, might, and power of Jehovah while studying Isaiah’s throne theophany (2 Nephi 16). My gratitude and love for Jesus Christ grows as I study his matchless life. I have ached and hoped for him while studying the accounts of Gethsemane and the cross in the New Testament (Matthew 26–27; Mark 14–15, Luke 22–23; John 17–19; D&C 19:15–19. While studying the Doctrine and Covenants, I have marveled at him as I contemplated his visit to the spirit world. I have wondered at his kindness as he loved, blessed, and served the righteous Saints there.

Like so many others, I have wept over my sins. I have pleaded for his forgiveness. I have received of his love, blessings, and Atonement. I love him. I love him because he saves me. However, I believe I love him more because of the way he loves the people I love. I am eternally grateful for what is revealed in Doctrine and Covenants 138 about Jesus Christ and his Atonement. Heaven bless each of us as we come unto him.

Notes

[1] M. Russell Ballard, “The Vision of the Redemption of the Dead,” Ensign, Nov. 2018, 73.

[2] Joseph Smith Jr., Discourse, 7 April 1844, as Published in Times and Seasons, www.josephsmithpapers.org.

[3] Russell M. Nelson, “Hope of Israel,” worldwide devotional for youth, June 3, 2018, www.churchofjesuschrist.org.

[4] Russell M. Nelson, “The Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation,” Liahona, Nov. 2021, 93–94; emphasis in original.

[5] Dale G. Renlund, “Through God’s Eyes,” Ensign, Nov. 2015, 94.

[6] Russell M. Nelson, “The Answer Is Always Jesus Christ,” Liahona, Apr. 2023, 127.

[7] Russell M. Nelson, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again,” Liahona, Nov. 2024, 121; emphasis in original.

[8] Patrick Kearon, “God’s Intent Is to Bring You Home,” Liahona, May 2024, 87.

[9] Ballard, “Vision of the Redemption of the Dead,” 72.

[10] Oliver Cowdery, Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1840, 202.

[11] Bruce R. McConkie, “The Purifying Power of Gethsemane,” Ensign, May 1985, 10.

[12] Cowdery, Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1840, 202.

[13] Kearon, “God’s Intent Is to Bring You Home,” 87.

[14] Russell M. Nelson, “Sisters’ Participation in the Gathering of Israel,” Ensign, Nov. 2018, 69; emphasis in original.

[15] Russell M. Nelson, “Hope of Israel,” worldwide devotional for youth, June 3, 2018, www.churchofjesuschrist.org.

[16] Russell M. Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 97; emphasis in original.

[17] Russell M. Nelson, “Focus on the Temple,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 121.