VIDEO: Come Follow Me with Living Scriptures: D & C 12–13; JS—H 1:66–75 | #ComeFollowMe
As the translating went on, Joseph and Oliver came across a passage of scripture indicating that one needed authority from God to baptize. Joseph and Oliver had not been baptized, and they decided to ask the Lord how it should be done. They went to a quiet place near the Susquehanna River. When they prayed, a messenger appeared, saying that his name was John, who was called John the Baptist in the New Testament. John the Baptist laid his hands on the heads of Joseph and Oliver and ordained them to the Aaronic Priesthood. The Aaronic Priesthood gave them the authority to baptize. They went to the river where Joseph first baptized Oliver, and then Oliver baptized Joseph. After they had been baptized, they were filled with the Holy Ghost.