A Words of Plainness Study by Brother Aaron — April 2026
A Word from Brother Aaron
As an ordained priest, I routinely find myself in interfaith conversations about Jesus Christ—sometimes in worship meetings, but more often in unplanned moments of daily life. It happens in campgrounds and grocery stores, at gas stations and laundromats, across picnic tables and in hospital waiting rooms. My wife Michelle and I travel full-time, and the Lord seems to have a habit of placing people in our path who need to talk about Him—or who need someone to listen. I have also had the privilege of hosting interfaith conversations about Christ in virtual reality, where believers from every Christian tradition gather to discuss the Savior. In both settings—the face-to-face encounters and the online gatherings—I have witnessed something that this study attempts to explain.
Most of these conversations begin with ordinary life—but they invariably turn toward God and His Christ. And when they do, something beautiful happens. We usually discover that the same Spirit is at work in all of us. But not always.
On one occasion, several ministers confronted me publicly. They told everyone present that Latter-day Saints are not Christians. That we believe in a different Jesus. That we teach works-based salvation. One of them directly interfered with a tender pastoral moment—I had been using John 14:21 to encourage a fearful young father to pray, to walk with Christ, to find a relationship with the Spirit of God to provide blessings for his family in addition to food, shelter, and clothing.
Then something happened in a similar gathering with the same ministers that had condemned me that I will never forget. Another minister—a man who described himself as anti-Mormon—stood up and said something I did not expect. He told the room that he had listened to my teachings for years, and that he had rarely met someone more thoroughly born again in Jesus Christ. He said he had never once heard me teach anything contrary to simple, pure Christianity.
I didn’t ask him to say that. He had no reason to defend me except for the truth of what he had witnessed. In that moment, questions that shaped this study pressed themselves upon my heart.
Who belongs to Christ? And to whom does Christ belong?
Is it the ministers who have correct creeds but use them as weapons?
Or is it a man who carries the wrong label but bears the right fruit?
I hear many say the common aphorism “The road to hell is paved with good intentions,” usually with a triumphant sneer on their faces. But in those moments I quietly think to myself, “Isn’t the road to heaven also paved with good intentions?” So, what makes the difference?
I suspect that the answers to these questions have less to do with the road and more to do with the Holy Lamb who walks it with us.
This study examines the meaning and use of the phrase “Church of the Lamb of God”—and asks what it teaches us about the questions I’ve posed. As I understand the phrase, it feels like one of the most generous and challenging truths in all of scripture. It is generous because it recognizes the hand of Christ in the lives of believers far beyond any single institution. It is challenging because it reminds every one of us of a truth exemplified by Christ in His acceptance of the repentant thief who died with Him in crucifixion. Belonging to the Lamb is measured by the heart, not by membership records, a catalog of the right works, or confessions of the correct creeds.
The Two Churches in Nephi’s Vision
The primary scriptural source for the phrase “Church of the Lamb of God” is found in the first book of Nephi, chapters 13 and 14. In a sweeping prophetic vision, an angel presents the young prophet Nephi with a stark picture of the last days. The angel declares: “Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil” (1 Nephi 14:10).
For modern readers, the word “church” conjures images of buildings, budgets, and membership rolls. But in the language of ancient scripture, the term carries broader weight. The Hebrew qahal and the Greek ekklesia refer to an assembly or congregation of people bound by a shared loyalty—not necessarily a single institution. In this sense, the “Church of the Lamb” is the collective of all individuals whose loyalties are fundamentally aligned with the Son of God. The “great and abominable church” is defined not by a denominational name but by its loyalty to those worldly ideals that are opposed to God’s wisdom and love.
Two Levels of the Vision
Scholars of the Book of Mormon have observed that Nephi’s vision operates on two distinct levels. In 1 Nephi 13, the description of the “great and abominable church” appears more historical—it describes movements that arose after the death of the apostles, corrupted the scriptures, and persecuted the saints. But in 1 Nephi 14, the tone shifts toward the apocalyptic. The “two churches” are presented not as two rival organizations but as universal categories that encompass all of humanity.
This categorical approach has been called the “A/Not-A” paradigm. The Church of the Lamb represents “A”—all that aligns with Christ. The church of the devil represents “Not-A”—all that does not. The distinction is determined by the heart rather than the records. As Stephen E. Robinson observed, the question is who has an individual’s loyalty, not which building they occupy on a Sunday morning.
This framework produces a startling conclusion: an individual on the records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may, by virtue of their disobedience, actually belong to the “great and abominable church.” And a believer in another denomination may, by virtue of their sincere devotion to Christ, belong to the “Church of the Lamb.” The dividing line is not institutional—it is covenantal and spiritual.
The Lamb as Title
The choice of the title “Lamb” is significant. While the title appears only rarely in the Old Testament, it appears with remarkable frequency both in the New Testament and in Nephi’s vision, serving as a central literary and theological marker. The “Lamb of God” emphasizes the sacrificial and atoning mission of Jesus Christ. The “Church of the Lamb” is therefore a community defined by its reliance on the Atonement—not by its organizational structure, its cultural identity, or even its doctrinal precision, but by its dependence upon the grace of the living Christ.
This focus on the Lamb also distinguishes the Savior’s kingdom from the kingdoms of the world. In apocalyptic literature, the kingdoms of the world are symbolized by beasts of prey—lions, bears, dragons. The Lamb stands in deliberate contrast: power expressed through sacrifice, not domination.
| Feature | Church of the Lamb | Great and Abominable Church |
|---|---|---|
| Size | Few in number (1 Nephi 14:12) | Multitudes; dominion over nations (1 Nephi 14:11) |
| Geography | Upon all the face of the earth (1 Nephi 14:12) | Among all nations and tongues |
| Power | Armed with righteousness and God’s glory (1 Nephi 14:14) | Wealth, luxury, and civil power |
| Identity | Saints of God; covenant people | Mother of abominations; founded by the devil (1 Nephi 14:9) |
The numerical paucity of the Church of the Lamb is a key prophetic detail. Nephi beheld that the saints were “few” because of the wickedness and influence of the opposing church. Yet the Church of the Lamb was “upon all the face of the earth”—a global presence that transcends localized institutional boundaries. This is not a description of any one denomination or creedal system. It is a description of a spiritual reality scattered across the earth.
Moving Beyond Institutional Polemics
For much of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, some Latter-day Saint leaders attempted to identify the “great and abominable church” with specific rival organizations—most notably the Roman Catholic Church. This identification was rooted in the Protestant polemics of the era and a particular reading of 1 Nephi 13 regarding the corruption of the biblical text.
As the Church matured and its global reach expanded, these specific institutional identifications were formally corrected. The First Presidency disowned certain published speculations as unsanctioned, and subsequent Church leaders revised their writings to replace specific denominational identifications with the broader definition consistent with the apocalyptic “A/Not-A” category.
Today, the official position of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that the “great and abominable church” refers to any organization—religious, political, economic, or social—that leads people away from God and His laws. This shift is not merely diplomatic. It is a theological deepening—a recognition that the “two ways” described by the prophet Lehi (the way of life and the way of death) are not denominational categories but moral ones.
By defining the “church of the devil” as an ideological orientation rather than a specific sect, Restoration theology makes room for a more honest view of truth and righteousness as they exist outside the formal boundaries of the Restored Church. And it places an uncomfortable mirror before those inside those boundaries: institutional membership, by itself, is no guarantee of belonging to the Lamb.
The Invisible Church: A Shared Christian Ideal
A Reformation Insight
The idea that God’s true people extend beyond any visible institutional church is not unique to Latter-day Saint thought. It is one of the oldest insights of the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther distinguished between the “visible church”—the institutional body with its buildings, clergy, and membership rolls—and the “invisible church” known only to God, composed of all true believers regardless of their denominational home. John Calvin made the same distinction, teaching that only God knows with certainty who truly belongs to Him. The Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) defines “the catholic or universal Church” as consisting of “the whole number of the elect, that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one” (25.1).
This matters deeply for the study at hand. When Latter-day Saint scholars describe the “Church of the Lamb” as a trans-denominational spiritual reality, they are not inventing a novel concept. They are recognizing something that faithful Christians have intuited for five centuries: that God sees His people where human institutions cannot. Nephi’s vision, given six hundred years before Christ, anticipates the very distinction that Luther and Calvin would later articulate from the New Testament—and grounds it in the person of the Lamb.
Latter-day Saint Voices
Within the Latter-day Saint tradition, several prominent thinkers have developed this concept with particular richness.
B. H. Roberts, a member of the First Council of the Seventy and one of the most formidable intellects of the early Church, argued that the “Church of the Lamb” represents the “kingdom of righteousness” or the “empire of Jehovah.” He taught that all that makes for truth and righteousness is of God and, in a meaningful sense, constitutes the Church of Christ. God-fearing individuals throughout the world were part of this kingdom regardless of their denominational label. Roberts cautioned the Saints against contending with other faiths “without discrimination,” noting that many religions have retained fragments of Christian truth. In his view, the light of truth continued to burn in the hearts of good men even when formal priesthood authority had been withdrawn from the earth.
Terryl Givens, a contemporary scholar, expands this concept by examining the metaphor of the church “fleeing into the wilderness” as found in Revelation 12. Givens suggests that during the era of the Great Apostasy, the true church survived as an invisible entity—a “church without walls” where spiritual gifts and godly principles persisted through righteous individuals. He connects this to Doctrine and Covenants 49:8, where the Lord speaks of “holy men that ye know not of” whom He has reserved unto Himself. The Church of the Lamb, in this view, is a broad, trans-denominational spiritual reality protected and preserved by God throughout history.
Stephen E. Robinson, whose scholarly analysis of 1 Nephi 13–14 provides the “A/Not-A” framework discussed above, emphasizes that loyalty to Christ is the defining criterion of membership in the Church of the Lamb—not institutional records, cultural identity, or denominational branding.
The Theological Mandate for Religious Liberty
The inclusive vision of the “Church of the Lamb” finds its institutional expression in our 11th Article of Faith: “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.” (Articles of Faith 1:11)
This is not merely a political statement. It is a theological conviction—a covenantal promise that the Restoration will protect the agency and conscience of all seekers, recognizing that the Spirit of God may already be at work in their lives.
Joseph Smith taught that “the Great Parent of the universe looks upon the whole of the human family with a fatherly care and paternal regard” (History of the Church 4:595). He actively promoted a spirit of liberality toward those of different faiths, arguing that religion is a matter between the individual and God, and that no person is authorized to take away another’s rights due to a difference of opinion. Smith taught that God would judge all nations based on their circumstances, their access to knowledge, and the laws by which they were governed.
This reinforces the vision of the “Church of the Lamb” as a global community of diverse individuals who are living according to the light they have received. The 11th Article of Faith is not tolerance—it is theology. It recognizes that the Lamb’s reach is wider than any single institution’s walls.
By the Same Spirit: The Light of Christ and the Gift of the Holy Ghost
If the Church of the Lamb extends beyond the membership rolls of any single institution, how is that possible? What is the mechanism by which a Catholic in Manila, a Baptist in Memphis, and a Latter-day Saint in Kenya can all experience the same Spirit?
Latter-day Saint theology offers a clear answer through the distinction between the Light of Christ and the Gift of the Holy Ghost.
The Light of Christ is defined as an enlightening, guiding influence given to every person who comes into the world. It is not a personage but a power—the moral compass by which all people can discern good from evil. Moroni taught: “The Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil” (Moroni 7:16). The Doctrine and Covenants identifies this light as that which “proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space” and which “giveth life to all things” (D&C 88:12–13).
The Gift of the Holy Ghost, by contrast, is a specific bestowal that comes through baptism and the laying on of hands by one holding priesthood authority. It offers the constant companionship of the third member of the Godhead—a deeper, more sustained relationship with the Spirit that sanctifies and transforms.
| Attribute | Light of Christ | Gift of the Holy Ghost |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | Universal; given to every person (Moroni 7:16) | Bestowed after baptism by authority (Acts 8:17) |
| Function | Moral compass; leads toward truth | Constant companionship; sanctification |
| Nature | Power or influence, not a personage | A personage of spirit (D&C 130:22) |
| Continuity | Always present; can be dimmed by sin | Conditional upon worthiness and covenant |
This distinction is essential. To us, it means that when a person of any faith or no faith responds to goodness, feels the pull of conscience, or experiences a moment of spiritual clarity, that experience is real. It is the Light of Christ at work. It is not imagination, and it is not the devil. It is the same God who fills the immensity of space reaching into the life of His child.
When that person hearkens to this light, they are led toward greater truth. For those who eventually receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost through the proper authority, this fuller endowment is not a replacement of what they had before—it is a deepening of the same Spirit they had already begun to follow.
This is why President Heber J. Grant could observe that the spirit felt in small, remote branches of the Church in Europe was “quite the same spirit” as that felt in Salt Lake City. The Spirit is one. Its operations are various. But its source is Christ, and its reach is as wide as the human family.
John 14:21: Manifestation as a Condition of Love
This is one of the most remarkable promises in all of scripture, and it is striking for what it does not say. The Savior does not say, “He that belongeth to the correct denomination.” He does not say, “He that hath the proper credentials.” He says, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them.” The criterion for divine manifestation is love expressed through obedience—not institutional affiliation.
This promise establishes a direct, personal relationship between the believer and the Savior. It has nothing to do with the idea of faith versus works. It is the sanctifying blending of faith, love, and obedience.
The promise is not mediated by clergy, by councils, or by creeds. It is intimate: “I will manifest myself to him.” The word “manifest” implies not merely an intellectual acknowledgment but a personal revelation—the living Christ making Himself known to the individual soul.
The use of the term “anyone” in the parallel verse (John 14:23) underscores the universal accessibility of this promise. It is open to all seekers of truth. Love for the Savior is demonstrated not through feelings alone but through faithfulness in keeping His commandments. And the result of that faithfulness is not a theological certificate—it is encounter with the living person of Jesus Christ.
For Latter-day Saints, this promise carries a specific weight. While the institutional Church holds the keys of the priesthood and the fullness of the gospel, the experience of Christ’s presence is not restricted to those with their names on the records. A person in another faith who is meek and lowly in heart and who confesses by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Christ may be closer to the glory of God than a nominal, disobedient member of the Church. As B. H. Roberts suggested, if any person—of any faith or none—is more righteous than a Latter-day Saint, they are that much closer to God’s favor.
John 14:21 thus serves as a theological bridge. It acknowledges that Christ is active in the lives of all who love Him, regardless of their doctrinal precision or denominational affiliation. For those who eventually receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost through the proper authority, the manifestation becomes fuller—but it is a deepening of the same relationship, not the beginning of a new one.
Reconciling Exclusivity and Inclusivity
The claim of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that it is the “only true and living church” (D&C 1:30) appears, on its surface, to contradict the inclusive vision of the “Church of the Lamb.” How can a church claim exclusive authority while recognizing that Christ’s people are scattered across every denomination and tradition?
The answer lies in the concept of fullness.
Restoration theology teaches that while other churches possess genuine Christian truth—and that their faith is real, life-giving, and from God—the Restoration has brought forth the fullness of the gospel, including the priesthood keys and ordinances necessary for exaltation. This does not mean that other faiths are “wrong” in a dismissive sense. It means that God has offered more light and guidance to the world in the latter days, along with authority and ordinances.
As a person with a candle possesses real light but does not possess the sun, we may strengthen our collective light into something like the sun by sharing it—adding it to the light of others.
In this framework, two realities coexist.
The Church of the Lamb (inclusive): Encompasses all who seek to follow Christ and act according to the Light of Christ. It is a community of the heart, scattered across the earth. This means that everyone belonging to any denomination of Christianity, or to none, may belong to the Church of the Lamb. And as we have discussed, the Light of Christ reaches further still, as both Isaiah and Revelation proclaim: by His light the nations are moved. (Isaiah 60:3, Revelation 21:24).
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (institutional): The organizational vehicle that holds the keys to gather the Church of the Lamb and provide the saving covenants. It is a community of authority and ordinance.
The mission of the institutional Church, then, is not to destroy the faith of other Christians but to invite them to receive more light. It is not to tell sincere believers that their experiences with the Spirit are false—those experiences are real, grounded in the Light of Christ and the Power of the Holy Ghost. Rather, it is to offer the fullness of what the Lord has chosen to do in these latter days.
This is the covenantal paradox. The Restoration claims to hold something no other church holds—and simultaneously recognizes that the Lamb’s people are already everywhere, responding to His voice in ways that the institution did not initiate and cannot control. The Church does not create the Church of the Lamb. It gathers it.
What This Means for How We Live
If the Church of the Lamb is defined by the heart rather than the specific rites and records, then the way Latter-day Saints interact with believers of other traditions must be shaped by recognition and reverence—not suspicion and superiority.
When we enter a Catholic cathedral and feel the weight of centuries of devotion, that is the Spirit bearing witness to the sincerity of those who built and worshiped there. When we hear a Baptist choir sing of Christ and our hearts burn, that is the same Spirit that burns in our own sacrament meetings. When we watch a grieving Orthodox family hold vigil with their icons and their prayers, the Spirit we feel is not deception—it is the Light of Christ honoring the love they bear for the Savior and for one another.
This recognition carries a sobering corollary. If a highly committed member of another faith who is sincerely striving to follow Christ may be more aligned with the Church of the Lamb than an uncommitted Latter-day Saint, then every one of us must ask ourselves the question of John 14:21: Do I have His commandments? Do I keep them? Is He manifesting Himself to me—not as a memory from a past testimony meeting, but as a living presence in my daily life?
Elder Neal A. Maxwell observed that casual members of the Church “often avoid appearing to be too righteous,” calling this an “ironic form of hypocrisy” (“Settle This in Your Hearts.” GC, Oct 1992). The irony is sharp. If the great sin of the Pharisees was appearing righteous without being righteous, the modern temptation is to avoid even the appearance of righteousness for fear of social discomfort. Neither posture belongs to the Lamb.
Conclusion: The Final Gathering
The phrase “Church of the Lamb of God” is a powerful theological symbol that invites a vision of global spiritual unity. After all, Jesus of Nazareth is both the Lamb of God and the Good Shepherd to all of us as His lambs and “little ones.”
In the prophetic narrative of the Book of Mormon, this church is few in number but armed with a divine power that transcends national and denominational borders. It is a community of the heart, composed of individuals who have responded to the Light of Christ and the Power of the Holy Ghost to seek truth and live righteously.
Restoration theology, while maintaining the necessity of restored priesthood authority and covenants, allows for a profound recognition of the same Spirit in all who love Jesus Christ. The 11th Article of Faith and the promise of John 14:21 provide a framework where the manifestation of the Savior is a reward for love and obedience—not a badge of institutional belonging. This is a clear warning against “gatekeeping” or ecclesiastical condemnations.
The Church of the Lamb represents the ultimate gathering of all those “holy men that ye know not of” (D&C 49:8) who have preserved the fire of faith throughout history. The Restoration’s role is not to ignite that fire for the first time. It is to gather those who already carry it and offer them the fullness of the Savior’s power and peace.
Nephi’s vision concludes not with the triumph of a single sect but with the power of the Lamb descending upon a diverse, global community of His saints who are united by their love for the Savior and their commitment to His commandments. That is the Church of the Lamb. It is not a building. It is not a budget. It is not a membership roll. It is every soul on the face of the earth who has turned toward the light and whispered, “I will follow the Lamb.”
Sources and Further Reading
- “The Church of the Lamb of God.” Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University. rsc.byu.edu
- Robinson, Stephen E. “Early Christianity and 1 Nephi 13–14.” Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University. rsc.byu.edu
- “By the Same Spirit.” Keepapitchinin: The Mormon History Blog. keepapitchinin.org
- “John 14:21 — Intimate Relationship.” Be Still. be-still.org
- 1 Nephi 14. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. churchofjesuschrist.org
- “Are There Really Only Two Churches?” ScriptureCentral. scripturecentral.org
- “The Church of the Devil and the Church of the Lamb of God.” Times & Seasons. timesandseasons.org
- “The Foundational Doctrines of 1 Nephi 11–14.” Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University. rsc.byu.edu
- Lesson 15: 1 Nephi 14. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. churchofjesuschrist.org
- “The Great and Abominable Church in the Book of Mormon.” FairLatterdaySaints. fairlatterdaysaints.org
- “How Do I Recognize and Understand the Spirit?” Preach My Gospel. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- “Becoming Children of Light.” Ensign, August 2014. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- “How Did the Latter-day Saint Doctrine of the Holy Ghost Develop?” From the Desk. fromthedesk.org
- “What Does ‘Manifest Myself to Him’ Mean in John 14:21?” GotQuestions.org.
- “The Power of Godliness: Temple Work Connects Us to Jesus Christ.” Liahona, October 2025.
- “John 14:21 Commentary.” StudyLight.org.
- Piper, John. “If Anyone Loves Me, He Will Keep My Word.” Desiring God. desiringgod.org
- “Being a Disciple of Christ.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Singapore.
- Holland, Jeffrey R. “Behold the Lamb of God.” General Conference, April 2019.
- Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 25, Section 1 (1646).
- Luther, Martin. On the distinction between the visible and invisible church. Various writings.
- Calvin, John. Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book IV.