D&C 98

After the wrongful persecution and illegal practices of some Missourians, the Lord said -

"...concerning the laws of the land, it is my will that my people should observe to do all things whatsoever I command them.
5 And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me." (Doctrine and Covenants Section 98:4 - 5)

You can sense His inspirational influence in the constitution as He says -

"...I, the Lord, justify you, and your brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land;
7 And as pertaining to law of man, whatsoever is more or less than this, cometh of evil.
8 I, the Lord God, make you free, therefore ye are free indeed; and the law also maketh you free." (Doctrine and Covenants Section 98:6 - 8)

So He then instructs -

"Wherefore, honest men and wise men should be sought for diligently, and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold; otherwise whatsoever is less than these cometh of evil." (Doctrine and Covenants Section 98:10)

I note the two conditions the Lord admonishes voters to consider - honesty and wisdom. In my mind, wisdom is following the counsel of the Lord as He says -

"I give unto you a commandment, that ye shall forsake all evil and cleave unto all good, that ye shall live by every word which proceedeth forth out of the mouth of God." (Doctrine and Covenants Section 98:11)

Elder Mark E. Petersen was a great advocate of our freedom and the constitution. He wrote -

“When the Kirtland Temple was to be dedicated and the Prophet Joseph sought direction from the Lord in accomplishing this important responsibility, the Lord gave to the Prophet the dedicatory prayer for the occasion. It was revelation—the word of the Lord—and not of man. Yet in it, the Lord directed the prophet to pray: “. . . may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.’ (D&C 109:54.) This is significant!

Let us recall again the words of the Lord to the Nephites. Said he, in speaking of this mighty nation of the Gentiles that he said would be established on this land in latter days: ‘For it is wisdom in the Father that they should be established in this land, and be set up as a free people by the power of the Father. . . .’ (3 Nephi 21:4. Italics added.)

Without the Constitution there would be no government such as the Lord had in mind. The Lord gave us that government by providing the Constitution written by the hands of wise men whom he raised up for this very purpose. It was an act of God. It was another step in establishing the free conditions under which the gospel could be restored and then taken by the believing Gentiles to all other nations.

As the Lord indicated so plainly through Nephi and likewise in his own declaration to the Nephites after his resurrection as quoted above, it was a giant step in the divine plan to fulfill the promise made to Abraham, that God would recover his scattered seed by the preaching of the gospel. (See 1 Nephi 22:7–11; 3 Nephi 21:4.) His sheep would know his voice.

This, then, is why there is a United States.

The Prophet Joseph Smith said that ‘the Constitution of the United States is a glorious standard; it is founded in the wisdom of God. It is a heavenly banner. . . .’ (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 147. Italics added.)

He also said, ‘I am the greatest advocate of the Constitution of the United States there is on earth.’ (Ibid., p. 326.)

The Constitution provided freedom of religion, speech, press, and assembly. Therefore, under the Constitution the Lord could restore the gospel and reestablish his church. The preparation of the Constitution was the work of his own hand. The restoration of the gospel was likewise his work. Both were part of a greater whole. Both fit into his pattern for the latter days.

There would be no state church in America to interfere. All men in this land now were given the right to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience, and that included Joseph Smith and his followers. It is true they were persecuted, as the people of God always have been, but the law—the Constitution—provided the very thing the Lord had in mind: freedom to reestablish his work in these last days, for he had so arranged it. . . .

For years the Church has held that the Constitution is an inspired document. But how many know why it was inspired and what the Almighty had in mind in giving such inspiration?

May we never forget the underlying reasons for it all: to provide a proper place for the restoration of the gospel and to allow for the worldwide preaching of that sacred word.

Let us always remember that its formation was one of the vital steps preparatory to the second coming of the Savior.” (Great Prologue, pp. 74–75, 78.)