In the revelation known as “the voice of warning,” the Lord promised that “the weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh”- this so that faith might increase, the “everlasting covenant might be established,” and the gospel “might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers” (D&C 1:19-23).
To Joseph Smith the Lord said: “I raised you up, that I might show forth my wisdom through the weak things of the earth” (D&C 124:1).
“And Out of Weakness”
There is a clearly discernible pattern from dispensation to dispensation in the manner in which the Lord has chosen to have the gospel taught and among those whom the Lord has called to lead his people.
The Lord prefers prophets to scholars, meekness to wealth, and simplicity to the magnificence and splendor of the world. Christ was born in a stable, not a Roman palace; his Apostles, with the exception of Judas, were unlearned fishermen of Galilee, their places of worship the hillsides and plains of Palestine.
In our modern day the missionaries destined to take the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people are described as “the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised.” These the Lord has called “to thrash the nations” by the power of his Spirit. (D&C 35-13.)