D&C 106

Section 106 is very short, only 8 verses, and introduces a new character, Warren A. Cowdery, Oliver Cowdery’s oldest brother. The IM gives background saying, “On his journey among the churches in early 1834, the Prophet Joseph Smith stopped in the village of Freedom, New York. Here he was entertained by Warren A. Cowdery, a brother of Oliver. (There were eight children in the Cowdery family, of which Warren was the oldest and Oliver the youngest.) The Prophet wrote that he stayed at Warren’s house, where ‘we were blessed with a full enjoyment of temporal and spiritual blessings, even all we needed, or were worthy to receive.’ The visit of the Prophet, as well as the influence of Oliver, who had been corresponding with his brother, resulted in the eventual conversion of Warren Cowdery to the Church. Through the efforts of the Prophet and other members of the Church, a branch was eventually established in Freedom, over which Warren Cowdery was called to preside. That fall found the Prophet very busy, especially in November. ‘It now being the last of the month,’ he wrote,’ and the Elders beginning to come in, it was necessary to make preparations for the school for the Elders, wherein they might be more perfectly instructed in the great things of God, during the coming winter.’ On 25 November the Prophet received the revelation contained in Doctrine and Covenants 106.”

106:1-5 - The Lord begins by calling Warren as “a presiding high priest over my church” in the area that he lives. The Lord tells him that he is to devote all this time to that calling, “seeking diligently the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness.” Warren can’t be a young man as he’s Oliver’s oldest brother, but I doubt he’s at the age where no one depends on him for their support. So it’s kind of difficult to take that knowledge and say “don’t do anything else except this work” but the Lord promises that if he does just that, that “all things necessary shall be added thereunto; for the laborer is worthy of his hire.” The Lord warns of the second coming being close “and it overtaketh the world as a thief in the night.” I tried to think of the second coming from an outsiders perspective, or just someone who doesn’t believe in God or who doesn’t know which specific god they believe in. If I were in that circumstance and Jesus came out of the sky in glory and suddenly lots of people were gone and everything changed, yeah I would be surprised. It probably wouldn’t even be on my radar as being possible, so the thief in the night comparison is pretty accurate.

106:6-8 – Verses 6 to 8 are specific to Warren but I like them very much because I haven’t heard them before and I feel like it is very personal and some of what I would like to hear if the Lord were to say something like this to me. The Lord tells Warren “there was joy in heaven when my servant Warren bowed to my scepter, and separated himself from the crafts of men.” I thought that this was very powerful, telling him that there was joy in heaven. It gives an eternal perspective and is empowering to know that you have people on both sides of the veil who are cheering for you. The Lord is pretty specific about Warren’s weaknesses too, and I feel that this is something that the Lord would be accurate in describing me, “I will have mercy on him, and, notwithstanding the vanity of his heart, I will lift him up inasmuch as he will humble himself before me.” I wouldn’t love to hear that come from the Lord towards me, but it would be accurate and it lets him know that nothing can be hidden from God. Finally the Lord promises him “a crown for him in the mansions of my Father” if he is faithful and diligent. Again, eternal perspective and personal. The IM tells us that “unfortunately, Warren A. Cowdery did not remain a faithful witness. He eventually went to Kirtland, Ohio, and was given a job in the printing office, later becoming the editor of the Messenger and Advocate. In the apostasy of 1837 he became associated with such dissidents as Warren Parrish, John F. Boynton, Leonard Rich, Luke Johnson, and Stephen Burnett. Like many, he grew rebellious against the Prophet and fell away from the Church.” This made me think about the company we keep, our friends being a hug influence on us, for good and for bad.