The first thing we need to understand is how doctrine is established in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Of all the sources provided us, and all the voices preaching, and all the talks given in Church sponsored meetings, which can we trust to learn the word and will of God. For me, President Ezra Taft Benson taught it most simply when he said that the word of God is "found in the scriptures, in the words of living prophets, and in personal revelation" (“The Power of the Word” Ensign, May 1986, p. 80). That is as clear as I have ever heard it stated. I have found that when I stay very close to those three sources, I am rarely deceived or misguided.

I have also found it helpful when trying to determine if something is part of the doctrine of the Church to ask myself the following four questions. I like to call this the "Doctrinal Safety Test":

1. Is it a pattern in the scriptures? It is easy to find one verse that teaches things we want to believe. Even falsehoods can sometimes be supported by one verse. But I feel more confident when I find it being taught multiple times throughout the scriptures.

2. Is it taught by the living prophets and apostles? We believe in ongoing, modern revelation and that the Lord "will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Articles of Faith 1:9). I like to stay with the living prophets and apostles. I also like to search for quotes from past prophets, but I only use them if they support that which is being taught by the living prophets. If the living prophets are not teaching on a certain subject than I like to find the last prophet who spoke about it. That, to me, constitutes the doctrine of the Church, until a living prophet or apostle says something to update, reaffirm, or expand on what that prophet taught.

3. Does the Spirit testify of its truthfulness? This requires me to live a life that will keep me in tune with the Holy Ghost and to be willing to receive intelligence from an unseen, yet nevertheless real, source. It is the source that confirms what I study and provides further insight on things I have already learned or on things I will need to know in the future.

4. Is it in harmony with the current teachings, practices, and policies of the Church? We don't live the law of Moses anymore. And there are many other examples of things we don't do that the Church once did. We are safest when we compare what we think is doctrine to the current Church.

This is the "Doctrinal Safety Test." Try using it the next time you discover something in the scriptures and wonder if it is true doctrine. Try it when you hear someone state something in church meetings, the media, or anywhere.