After Christ left the earth the apostles had the authority to direct the affairs of the church by revelation.
- - - -
What about the 3 Nephites, did they have the priesthood?
Or the apostle John.
Mormons claim all four of them have been alive for 2,000 years.
What authority was "lost" in need of "restoration" if Christ had 4 authoritative reps on earth?.
What? One 14 yo was better than 4 almost 1,900 years old?
So these 4 had over 7,500 years of living experience between them, and two unnamed "personages" came down & decided to go for pimples & puberty, ignoring the stature and tenure of these four?
How do you think John and these three Nephites felt being grouped together as part of a "universal apostasy?" (What part of the word "universal" excludes them?)
Or, could it be, you believe both the Book of Mormon & D&C passages on these four were false?