Question
Dear Gramps,
I have long pondered over a passage in D&C 93, that I have never been able to figure out. In that section, the Lord quotes from the ‘Testimony of John’ and the account given is similar to that found in John, chapter 1, but then it adds the passage about the heavens opening and the Holy Ghost descending like a dove. It seems that it is from John, the Beloved, writer of the Gospel of John, but that passage about the Holy Ghost seems to refer to John the Baptist. When would John the Beloved have seen the Holy Ghost descending like a dove? Has this sign been used elsewhere, where John could have seen it, or should we assume he attended the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist? Thanks,
Jon
Answer
Dear Jon,
If you would read the footnotes in the Mormon scripture Doctrine and Covenants 93:6-18, I think that it would clear up your dilemma.
The footnote in verse 6 identifies the John that is referred to in verses 6 through 18 as John, the Beloved, the author of the Gospel of St. John. In verse 15 of Section 93, John the Beloved testifies of the truthfulness of the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. It does not state that he was an eyewitness to that event. In verses 16 and 17 he testifies that Jesus received a fullness of glory, and all power both in heaven and in earth. This fullness, as referenced in the footnote in verse 17, citing Matt. 28:18, was reported by Jesus to the eleven disciples on a mountain in Galilee after his resurrection.
Gramps
