Journal of Discourses Volume 25

BY:  PRESIDENT JOHN TAYLOR,

HIS COUNSELLORS,
THE TWELVE APOSTLES,
AND OTHERS

Reported By
GEO. F. GIBBS, JOHN IRVINE AND OTHERS.

Respectfully Dedicated to the Latter-Day Saints in All the World

VOL. XXV.

ENTERED AT STATIONERS' HALL.
LIVERPOOL:

PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY JOHN HENRY SMITH, 42, ISLINGTON.
LONDON:

LATTER-DAY SAINTS' BOOK DEPOT, 19, 
SUTHERLAND STREET PIMLIGO LONDON, S. W.

1884.

Preface

Vol. 25, p.iii
In presenting this TWENTY-FIFTH Volume of the Journal of Discourses to
our readers, we express the hope that they may be inspired by the same
spirit in perusing those discourses, that our brethren enjoyed in
delivering them, and that the fruits may be seen in increased
diligence and faith in the lives of the Latter-day Saints.

THE PUBLISHER.[p.1]

George Q. Cannon, September 2, 1883

(CONCLUDED FROM PAGE 376, JOURNAL DISCOURSES)

Traveling Through the Settlements—The Necessity of the Settlements
Being
Visited—Revelation—Bogus Authority of Sectarian Preachers—The Claim
that the
Canon of Scripture is Full—The Cause of There Being No Communication
With God
—Visitation of the Father and Son and Holy Angels to Joseph
Smith—Mahomed—
The World No Idea of the Character of God—Restoration of the Knowledge
of God—Angels not Feathered Beings—No Wonder the World Has Gone Astray
—Space Between Death and the Resurrection—the Reign of Satan—Joseph
Smith
Accomplished His Mission—Persecution—This Nation Making Joseph Smith
a Prophet—No Surrendering the Kingdom of God—God Will Deliver His
People—
Temples—Shall Those Who Have Obeyed the Law of God Be Looked Down Upon
 By Those Who Have not?—Conclusion

Delivered in the Meeting House, Provo, Sunday Morning, September 2nd,
1883.

Reported By John Irvine

Vol. 25, p.1
All that is necessary on our part is to fear God and keep his
commandments—to be brave and loyal and true to the cause that He has
established upon the earth—to live such lives of purity as shall
enlist heaven in our behalf. That is all that is necessary for us as
individuals, or as a people, to do. God is doing a great work among
us, much greater than many of us imagine. We do not see Him, but He is
nevertheless in our midst. We do not see Jesus, but He is nevertheless
in our midst. We do not see angels, but they are nevertheless in our
midst. God is working to get this people to the perfection that He
desires them to attain. We are building Temples. Who shall enter these
Temples when completed? Shall the adulterer? Shall the whoremonger?
Shall the thief? Shall the drunkard? Shall the blasphemer? Shall the
Sabbath breaker? Shall the men who defile themselves by the sins of
the world enter therein and receive all those precious blessings that
God has to bestow? Ask yourselves who shall enter therein. I tell you,
my brethren and sisters, that God demands of us a holiness of life
that we cannot conceive of at the present time; but there are duties
we can conceive of, that we should attend to. We should [p.2] put away
sin far from us. We should live so that our God will be very near to
us. And we should encourage faith in our hearts.

Vol. 25, p.2
There is a class of people who have been disfranchised because they
have chosen to obey the word of God; they have been excluded from the
polls, excluded from office, and another class of Latter-day Saints
are now in possession of the offices. Shall those who have not obeyed
the law of God as perfectly as their brethren and sisters—shall they
look down upon those who have obeyed that law and say: "You have been
put out of office; we have chosen the better part; we have done that
which has resulted in the most good; and if it had not been that we
were reluctant to obey that law, this Territory to-day would not be in
the hands of the Latter-day Saints?" Shall that be the expression of
feeling on the part of those who have been, for various reasons,
prevented from obeying the fullness of the law of God? Woe! to this
people if that were to be the feeling. I bear my testimony this day
that God has commanded us, His servants, to obey His law, and I would
not, for all this world, for all its honors, and for everything that
is within the power of man to bestow—I would not be in any other
condition than the one I am in, so far as that law is concerned. I
dare not risk my salvation outside of obedience to that law. There may
be men who will get into the celestial kingdom who have not obeyed
that law—God will be their judge—but I dare not put myself in that
position; I dare not risk my eternal salvation and exaltation on any
such contingency as that. The law has been revealed. The moment the
revelation was published and it came to my knowledge, it became a
command to me—though I was not mentioned personally—and I accepted it
as such. I have obeyed it as such, believing in my heart that God will
save and exalt all those who perfectly carry it out. It is the hatred
of that principle among others, that creates excitement. Yet, by that
principle, God has designed to accomplish His purposes on the earth,
and to redeem His people from the evils which afflict mankind at the
present day. The other agencies that are at work among men to-day, are
complete failures. What has all Christendom done towards stopping or
arresting the progress of prostitution? All the preachers combined
have no more effect upon it than the whistling of the wind. It
increases and spreads. And who shall deliver mankind from that sin and
dreadful train of evils? There is nothing can do so but the power of
God, the commandments of God, and the revelations of God. God has
revealed the law by which it shall be accomplished, and we have seen
the effects of it to a certain extent. We see a generation growing up
here, young men and young women, who are the admiration of all who
behold them—fine physical specimens of manhood and womanhood—pleasant
faces and lovely countenances and forms—showing that the blessings of
God have evidently rested upon the parents. I thought of Brother
Smoot's case. I remarked but for plurality, he would to-day have been
without a child of his own. But see what a number of children he has,
and what beautiful children they are. It is so everywhere throughout
these mountains. The blessing of God has rested down upon His
servants. Their houses are filled with beautiful children. The
blessing of God  has attended [p.3] the men who have obeyed His law,
and the women also. They have had their trials; but these have had the
effect of purifying them. They have gained strength and power with
God, and with man also, and the day will come when they will be
honored men and honored women on the face of the earth. That day will
come. It may be distant yet for a little while, but it will come most
assuredly.

Vol. 25, p.3
I pray God my Heavenly Father, to fill you with the Holy Ghost, that
you may be enlightened thereby, and that you may be led to see and
comprehend the greatness of the work in which we are engaged, and the
character of those influences we have to contend with. There are
unseen influences on both sides. There are unseen and invisible
agencies that God our Heavenly Father has brought to bear upon this
work to aid us, and there are on the other side those unseen agencies
of evil. We can tell them by their fruits and by the results of their
actions upon the children of men. Let us remember that it is not that
which is before us alone that we have to contend with, but that there
are powers behind those that we see in the flesh, and those powers are
determined to destroy this work. It is a contest between Satan and
God, and there can be no doubt as to the result; and if we cling to
the truth we shall take part in all the glorious triumphs of this
work, which I pray for in the name of Jesus. Amen. [p.4] 

Wilford Woodruff, January 6, 1884

"Truth is Mighty and Will Prevail"—Introduction of the Principles of
Eternal Truth—
Fulfilment of Prophecy in Our Own Time—Principles of the Gospel Worthy
of 
Consideration—Their Unpopularity—Peculiar Position of the Latter-Day
Saints
—The Kingdom of God Predicted By the Prophets—Joseph Smith—No Power
Can
 Stay the Hand of Almighty—The Gospel of Christ is the Law of
Salvation—Persecution—
Polygamy—Treat Our Fellow Men Aright—Commencement of the
Millennium—Warfare
 Between God and the Devil—Faith—the Secret of the Strength of the
Saints—Responsibility
 of Rulers, Etc.—Responsibility of the Saints

Delivered in the Assembly Hall, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon,
 January 6, 1884.

Reported By John Irvine.

Vol. 25, p.4
There is a proverb or saying which I have heard a good many times in
my life, and which I think bears a great deal of weight, and that is,
"truth is mighty and will prevail." I think this has been manifested
in every capacity in which truth has been used, whether applied
temporally or spiritually; whether applied in the capacity of nations,
or families, or individuals; whether applied to the world or to the
kingdom of God. I think that in every age of the world, truth, whether
it has been popular or unpopular, has proved itself, in the end of its
labor, to prevail in all eases. When Columbus was moved upon by the
Spirit of God, to cross the ocean to find a new continent, his object
and desires were unpopular with those by whom he was surrounded, and
it was only after a good deal of labor that he gained favor in the
eyes of any of the rulers of the nations whereby to receive assistance
sufficient to carry out his wishes. But in the end he prevailed. He
found a new world, as it were, which to-day contains a population of
the Anglo-Saxon race, numbering fifty millions of people. The
commencement of Columbus' project was certainly unpopular, but the
result has proved it true. And so in all cases, whenever men have been
inspired to receive truth, or to promulgate any principle, which would
be a benefit to the human family, they have generally been unpopular.
When Robert Fulton undertook to demonstrate the power of steam in a
steamboat, the crowd which gathered to behold the event, did not
gather to see success; they gathered there to ridicule, to see a man
fail in performing a work which they considered impossible. But when
the steam  was applied to the vessel it moved. The invention was
certainly [p.5] very crude, but there was truth in it, and it has
prevailed to a great extent; for steam is the great motive power of
all the machinery in the world, in a great measure. And so with a
Scottish Earl when he announced that there was a man going to try and
light the City of Edinburgh with smoke. The man was looked upon as
crazy. But there was truth in that smoke, and it lit the city, and it
has given light to a good many other cities since. The principle
prevailed, and is now adopted throughout the world. So with Mr. Morse,
the electrician. He unsuccessfully in the first instance, [in 1837-8]
sought aid both from the American Congress and the English government
to enable him to carry out his ideas; but, ultimately [in 1843] he
gained assistance from Congress, and his invention of telegraphy was
demonstrated a success, and is now made use of throughout the
civilized world. And so we might go on to show that in almost every
instance when men have undertaken to introduce new
principles—principles of truth—principles that would benefit the human
family—they have generally been very unpopular, until the truth was
made manifest to the world.

Vol. 25, p.5
The same thing may be applied to the introduction of the principles of
eternal truth pertaining to the salvation of the human family in a
spiritual point of view. When our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
stepped forth into the world to occupy the position to which He had
been ordained of God, there were but few individuals who had faith in
Him, or who were looking for the coming of the Son of Man in
fulfillment of prophecy. Jesus, all His life, it maybe said, from the
manger to the cross, was very unpopular with the mass of the human
family, more particularly the inhabitants of Jerusalem. His history is
before the world. He died an ignominious death upon the cross, and
those of His own Father's house, the High Priests, and the leading men
of Jerusalem, were all in favor of His death. Yet the Savior possessed
truth. He offered truth to the world; He offered life and salvation to
the world. But the principles He taught were unpopular in His day. He
gathered around Him a few followers; but the acceptance of His
principles cost them their lives, as it did the life of the Savior
Himself. I do not know of a man—except it was John the Revelator—who
escaped. They all died violent deaths. They had to seal their
testimony with their blood. Some were crucified; others were sawn
asunder, beheaded, or in some way put to death for the word of God,
and the testimony of Jesus Christ. They were put to death for their
religion. How is it to-day? What name has been more honored, or more
held up as an ensample to the world than the name of Jesus Christ? The
Catholic world, the Protestant world, in fact the whole Christian
world are professing to honor the name of Jesus Christ. The Savior had
truth, but it was not received in His day and time.

Vol. 25, p.5
With regard to our own time my mind is often led to reflect upon it.
Half a century has past and gone before the eyes of this generation,
since the God of heaven commenced, as in former ages of the world, the
fulfillment of prophecy and revelation contained in the Bible—this
good old book that the Christian world profess to believe in so much.
The Lord has set His hand to bring to pass some of these prophecies
and principles which He had foreordained before the world was, and
[p.6] which He has left on record through the medium of holy men who
wrote and spoke as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost from
generation to generation. Those prophecies are with us to-day. They
are contained in the Bible, a book that is published by millions
throughout the Christian world. The Christian world profess to honor
the Bible and to honor the prophecies and sayings of Christ and the
Apostles. But do they believe in the fulfillment of these things? Do
they believe in the fulfillment of these principles and truths which
are today being fulfilled in the eyes of heaven and earth? No. Those
prophecies and those principles—which the God of heaven has set His
hand to carry out—are as unpopular to-day throughout the Christian
world as they were when Jesus of Nazareth stood in the flesh and
proclaimed the same to the Jewish nation. We occupy the same position
that they did in that day and generation with regard to these truths.
Now, as I have said, truth is mighty. It always has prevailed in every
age of the world. It will prevail in this dispensation as it has done
in others. The God of Israel will no more fail to-day to carry out the
principles which He has stretched forth His hand to establish, than he
did in the days of either Adam, Enoch, Noah, or Jesus, or in the days
of any other dispensation.

Vol. 25, p.6
The principles to which I allude —the principles of the Gospel—are
worthy the attention and comprehension of at least the Latter-day
Saints, and it would he well for the Christian world to take them into
consideration also; for if truth is going to prevail in the earth it
certainly will involve the destiny of this whole generation, Jew and
Gentile, high and low, rich and poor, Zion and Babylon. It will
involve the destiny of the whole world —of the fourteen hundred
millions of people who breathe the breath of life in it. And I bear
record and testimony; as a servant of God, that the God of heaven has
set His hand to carry out those great and eternal principles which He
decreed before the world was made and which He has left on record
through the mouths of His prophets, to be fulfilled in the last
dispensation and fullness of times. Are these principles popular
to-day? They are not. Why not? Because the world is not governed by
the spirit of inspiration; because its people do not seek the Lord;
because they do not honor His name; but they are governed and
controlled by other principles. But the Lord will rule over His own
Kingdom, notwithstanding the Devil has great dominion to-day as he has
had in almost every age of the world. The inhabitants of the earth
have their agency. They must use that agency according to the desires
of their own hearts, whether they be for good, or whether they be for
evil. But the day is at hand when the Lord will show the children of
this generation that there is a God in Israel, as He has done in other
dispensations when He has reigned. In all the history of the dealings
of God with man this one principle, sooner or later, has manifested
itself: that virtue exalteth a nation, while sin is a reproach to any
people. You will see that this has been manifested in the history of
all nations under heaven—in their rise and progress and prosperity,
and in their fall and decline and in their final overthrow and
destruction. You will find in every instance that sin, error,
darkness, falsehood, wrong-doing, have laid the foundation of the
overthrow [p.7] of every nation and city under heaven from the
foundation of the world until the present time. What man sow they will
reap, and what measure they measure to others will be measured unto
them.

Vol. 25, p.7
To-day we occupy a peculiar position as a people—as Latter-day Saints
here in these mountains Here is a people growing up in the earth w he
are organized in to a Church, called the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. How did the organization of that Church come about?
Why, the God of heaven has proclaimed through His prophets Isaiah,
Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and others, whose writings are contained within the
lids of the Bible, that in the latter days He would set His hand to
call forth His Church out of the wilderness and out of darkness and
error, and establish it upon the foundation of truth, Christ Jesus
being the chief corner stone. The God of heaven also proclaimed
through Daniel, 4,000 years ago, that in the latter days he would set
up a kingdom which should never be destroyed; and the kingdom should
not be left to other people, but it should break in pieces and consume
all these kingdoms, and it should stand forever. That prophet also
declared that a little stone should be cut out of the mountain without
hands; that the stone should become a great mountain and fill the
whole earth; and that it should break in pieces all other kingdoms.
Was that Prophet inspired by the Spirit and power of God? I say in the
name of Israel's God he was, and so was Isaiah when he spoke of the
gathering of the people auto the mountains of Israel to establish the
Zion of God in its beauty, strength, power and glory. The God of
heaven also inspired a prophet as he stood upon the Isle of
Patmos—John the Revelator—and in connection with the great events of
the Fast dispensation and fullness of times he saw, in vision, an
"angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to
preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and
kindred, and tongue and people, saying with a loud voice, tear God and
give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come." Now I want
this congregation; I want the world; I want the Christian world; I
want the priests of the day who cry aloud for the blood of innocence
to be shed to carry out their desires—I want these priests and all who
are laboring to overthrow "Mormonism," to carefully inquire, whether
those prophets were inspired of God, And if they were inspired of God,
whether it is right for them to make war against the work of God in
the earth? Whether it would not be better to let these things alone—to
leave them in the hands of the Lord, and allow Him to govern and
control as He sees fit? And if these men were inspired of the Lord and
made those proclamations—with thousands of others in the Bible and in
the revelations of God—the question is, whether this warfare against
God and against His work is going to prevail? The wicked will have no
such power; for the Lord has set His hand to fulfill these things
which have been predicted by His Prophets—to establish His Church and
Kingdom upon the earth. He has called Prophets, and they were inspired
of God. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God. He was a man raised up by
the power of God. He received the testimony of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ by visions and revelation as did John the Revelator. Angels
appeared unto him and taught him the ways of life. [p.8] Those men who
held the Priesthood —who were put to death in the flesh for the word
of God, and the testimony of Jesus Christ—visited Joseph Smith. John
the Baptist conferred upon him the Aaronic Priesthood; Peter, James
and John, the Apostleship and Melchisedek Priesthood; and all the
Prophets who held any keys and powers belonging to the Gospel these
also visited Joseph Smith, and conferred upon him those keys and
powers and authority to administer them on the earth. These are
eternal truths, as the God of heaven lives, and they will prevail
whether men believe them or not, or whether the wicked war against
them or not. These truths belong to God Himself. He is the author of
them. He has given forth certain decrees, and they will have their
fulfillment in the earth.

Vol. 25, p.8
Now, as far as the Latter-day Saints are concerned, I will say to my
brethren and sisters, we ought to contemplate these principles. There
is no power organized beneath the heavens that can stay the hand of
Almighty God. He has set His hand to carry out His purposes. The world
hate this people, because the Lord has called them forth out of the
world, the same as He called His disciples of old. This is the
position we occupy to-day, as His people. Though our numbers are
small, yet "a little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a
strong nation:" and the Lord will hasten it in His time. A little one
has already become more than a thousand, or a hundred thousand, and in
spite of all opposition this small one will become a great nation, and
God will hasten it in His time, because God is our friend. Now, these
are truths. They have emanated from God Himself.

Vol. 25, p.8
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the law of salvation. No man can be
saved without it. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to
every one that believeth—to Jew or Greek, Catholic, Methodist,
Baptist, or any other sect or party on the face of the earth.

Vol. 25, p.8
We, as Latter-day Saints, are called upon to build up Zion. We have
been gathered to be instructed by inspiration and through the medium
of the Holy Priesthood, in the principles of eternal truth. This is
our condition to-day. Fifty-three years have passed since this work
commenced. Joseph Smith dwelt in the flesh some fourteen years after
he organized this Church. He holds the keys of this dispensation on
both sides of the veil, and will hold them forever. God ordained him
to perform a certain work. He performed it. He stayed on earth until
his work was finished. All the keys, powers and principles which God
gave unto him he left with his brethren; although whatsoever he left
with his brethren did not take from him; for as Jesus says in a
revelation given in regard to the Priesthood:

Vol. 25, p.8
"Whose is faithful unto the obtaining these two Priesthoods of which I
have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the
Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies;

Vol. 25, p.8
"And he that receiveth my Father, receiveth my Father's Kingdom;
therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him;

Vol. 25, p.8
"And this is according to the oath and the covenant which belongeth to
the Priesthood;

Vol. 25, p.8
"But whose breaketh this covenant, after he hath received it, and
altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness  of sins in
this world nor in the world [p.9] to come."—Doc. and Cov., Sec. 84.

Vol. 25, p.9
Thus, although the Lord bestows upon His servants the same powers and
blessings that He Himself holds, it does not take away these powers
and blessings from the Father. The Father possesses all He had before.
The Son possesses all that he hath given unto him. So do the sons of
the living God. When a man bestows those gifts and blessings and
powers upon others, he does not lose them himself. The Lord raised up
Joseph Smith. He organized this Church. It has been organized for 54
years next April. And what has been the consequence? Have we had
opposition? Yes. Have we had persecution? Yes. Is not the desire of a
great many millions of people for our overthrow? Yes; and a great many
wish us put to death. Some men go so far as to be willing to slay,
utterly, men, women and children, because they believe what is termed
"Mormonism," but which is really the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These
things are proclaimed to the world to-day. What is the matter?
Mormonism is unpopular. Why is it unpopular? "Because," say the
priests of the day, "it interferes with our rights. We preach for hire
and divine for money, and if the Mormons were to prevail in the earth,
we should lose our business, and we cannot endure it." "Why," says the
world, "you profess to believe in polygamy, and that is why you are
persecuted." No, you are mistaken about that. The worst persecution
this Church ever endured was before polygamy was revealed to the
Church. We have had more prosperity since we carried out that law, and
endeavored to fulfill it according to the command of God, than we ever
had as a people before. And here is the principle with me—I speak as
an individual; I speak for myself—if this work is of God; if the
Gospel of Jesus Christ, as revealed to Joseph Smith, is true, then God
will take care of it; if the patriarchal law of marriage comes from
the God of Israel, He will take care of it; He will protect and defend
it, and He will uphold the people that carry it out. I say this is in
the name of Israel's God, And if it is not of God, who wants it? I
don't, neither do this people. I speak of this principle because I
want my brethren and sisters to understand the views I have upon it.

Vol. 25, p.9
I know we are engaged in the work of the Lord. I know this is His
Church. He has organized it with Prophets and Apostles in fulfillment
of predictions made thousands of years ago. This is a work which was
ordained before the world was. The Lord Almighty never created a world
like this and peopled it for 6,000 years, as he has done, without
having some motive in view. That motive was, that we might come here
and exercise our agency. The probation we are called upon to pass
through, is intended to elevate us so that we can dwell in the
presence of God our Father. And that eternal variety of character
which existed in the heavens among the spirits—from God upon his
throne down to Lucifer the son of the morning—exists here upon the
earth. That variety will remain upon the earth in the creations of
God, and for what I know, throughout the endless ages of eternity. Men
will occupy different glories and positions according to their
lives—according to the law they keep in the flesh.

Vol. 25, p.9
But I want the Latter-day Saints to understand their position. Our
trust is in God. With regard to men, it is our duty to  treat our
[p.10] fellow-men aright, to leave them in the hands of God if they
persecute us. The Lord has a controversy with this generation. This
Bible, the Old and New Testament, contains a vast amount of, I will
say, tremendous revelations, tremendous events, which hang over the
heads of the people of this dispensation. Are these events going to
fall unfulfilled? No; no more than they did in the days of the fall of
Babylon, of Nineveh, of Jerusalem, and of other cities in the nations
of the earth. When the inhabitants of Jerusalem became ripe in
iniquity; though Jerusalem was the royal city, in which was the Urim
and Thummim, and in which sacrifices were made unto the Lord, yet the
city was laid low, and the Jews have been trampled under the feet of
the Gentiles for 1,800 years. We are living at the commencement of the
Millennium, and near the close of the 6,000th year of the world's
history. Tremendous events await this generation. You can read an
account of them in the revelations of St. John; the opening of the
seals; the blowing of the trumpets; the pouring out of the plagues;
the judgments of God which will overtake the wicked when Great Babylon
comes in remembrance before God, and when the sword that is bathed in
heaven shall fall on Idumea, or the world who shall be able to abide
these things? Here we are living in the midst of these tremendous
events.

Vol. 25, p.10
We are in the hands of God; our nation is, and so are the nations of
the earth; and when they undertake to overthrow the Kingdom of God,
which is decreed shall be established, they have somebody to fight
against besides Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, or John Taylor, or any
other of the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. This warfare is between God and the devil, between light and
darkness, truth and error, between the heavens and the earth; and that
God who has supported His work from the creation of the world, is
bound to do it unto the end. Where have you ever read that the Kingdom
of God would be overthrown in the last days? You cannot find it
anywhere on the pages of the records of divine truth. No; the
revelations of God will be fulfilled. And we must exercise faith in
that direction. As the ancients had faith; as the world was created by
faith; as Noah built an ark and preached the Gospel of repentance for
120 years by faith; as Abraham went out not knowing where he was going
by faith; as the ancients performed many mighty works, such as the
subduing of cities and kingdoms by faith; therefore I say to the
Latter-day Saints, you are required by the God of Israel, your
Heavenly Father, by his Son Jesus Christ, by the holy angels, and by
every principle of eternal truth, to exercise faith in the revelations
of God, for they will be fulfilled as the Lord lives. God is with this
people. But we are required to hearken to his voice, obey his
commandments, and humble ourselves before him. And I thank the Lord
that I have lived to see the time when I believe there is a great
improvement among the Latter-day Saints. I believe they are exercising
greater faith in God. And there is a calmness prevailing among the
Mormons—so called—that is a marvel and a wonder to the world. The
world wonder why we are not excited over the opposition that is
brought to bear upon us by the millions of people who inhabit this
continent, as well as by the people of the nations of the earth. The
[p.11] reason of our calmness is—God is our friend, our lawgiver, our
deliverer. If the Lord cannot sustain His work, we certainly cannot.
But He can. He has always done it, and will do it to the end.
Therefore I say to the Saints, fear not. Trust in God. Let not your
hearts be faint. Let your prayers ascend to the ears of the Lord of
Sabbaoth, day and night. Ask what you want. When you do that, the Lord
will answer your prayers, if you ask what is right. There is where our
our strength lies. It is in God. I have no hope in anything else. But
I do look upon the Latter-day Saints as occupying a most glorious
position in this day and age of the world. This is the first time
since God created the world that he has ever established a
dispensation to remain on the earth until the coming of the Son of
Man—to remain in power and strength and glory, until the Millennium,
until He reigns whose right it is to reign. Behold what lies before
you! Behold the power of God! Behold the prosperity of Zion! Behold
the blessings which have rested upon your houses, your lands, your
flocks and herds, your children—the blessings of the earth as well as
of the heavens—in this mighty barren desert! Then should we have any
doubts or fears with regard to the Kingdom of God? No! As a people we
should rise up in faith and power before God, and make our wants
known, and leave our destiny in His hands. It is there anyhow, It will
remain there. And with regard to our nation, I leave them in the hands
of God; but I would to God their eyes were open to see and understand
the responsibilities that rest upon them. I would to God that the
rulers of our land—the President of the United States, the Congress of
the United States, the Supreme Court of the United States—would learn
the responsibility the God of heaven will hold them to in the
administration of those glorious principles laid down in the
Constitution of the government of this country. The God of heaven will
hold this nation, as well as all other nations, responsible for the
manner in which these principles are used. If they misuse them, it
will be their loss. If they trample the Constitution under foot; if
they undertake to deprive any portion of citizens of the rights the
Constitution guarantees unto them, they will be held responsible, and
will have to pay the bill. When innocent blood is shed, it costs
something; and I would to God that our nation could understand the
blessings they enjoy. There is no nation on the face of the earth that
has the same liberty that is guaranteed to us by the Constitution of
our country.

Vol. 25, p.11
Have we any warfare with our Government? Have we any reproach to offer
them? Not at all I feel sorry that this nation should sow seeds which
when ripe will bring destruction; for I know as God lives that if this
or any other government departs from the principles of truth, becomes
ripened in iniquity, forsakes the Lord, forsakes the principles of
life and liberty, the Goal of heaven will hold it responsible.
Judgments will come upon the wicked. When men depart from the
principles of truth and cleave unto darkness and wickedness, they reap
the whirlwind; they lay the foundation for desolation.

Vol. 25, p.11
I pray God my heavenly Father, that his blessing may rest upon us as
Latter-day Saints; that we may comprehend and understand our position,
our duties and our responsibilities to God. When I look, [p.12]
brethren and sisters, upon this handful of men and women here in these
mountains of Israel, say 150,000, out of the fourteen hundred million
people that dwell on the earth; when I realize the responsibility that
God has laid upon the Latter-day Saints, the responsibility of
building up this great kingdom of our God, of proclaiming the
principles of eternal life, light and truth to the world; when I
reflect upon these things I ask myself the question, What manner of
men ought we to be? Our numbers are small compared even with the
inhabitants of this nation, not to speak of the inhabitants of the
world; yet, as I said before I say again, the God of heaven looks to
the Latter-day Saints to carry on His work.

Vol. 25, p.12
Then let us be careful. Let us realize our condition. Let us realize
we are here upon a mission. Let us realize that we will be held
responsible for the manner in which we fill it. We should be willing
to sacrifice everything for the upbuilding of the Kingdom of God. Any
man who will seek to save his life and desert the principles of the
Gospel, is not worthy of eternal life. How many have laid down their
lives since the creation of the world for the sake of the truth? Jesus
Himself descended below all things. He descended, I believe, lower
than any other man will be called to descend. Are we greater than
Jesus? If we are called upon to-day to lay down our lives, what of it?
Is it not as well to die for the Gospel's sake as to die for anything
else? A million of men, a few years ago, sacrificed their lives for
the honor of this nation. No matter what we may be called to pass
through, let us maintain our integrity to God. Where is the man whose
mind has been lit up by the inspiration of God to comprehend the
celestial kingdom, or the celestial law, or the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, who can bear the idea of pursuing a course whereby he will be
cut off from inheriting the blessings for which he has hoped in the
future? No, I would rather die a thousand deaths than be deprived of
these blessings. We have a long time to live when we get through here.
There is all eternity before us. It will pay you, it will pay me—no
matter what comes, no matter what this nation may do to oppress us—to
be true and faithful to our covenants, to our wives and children, to
our God and to our country; it will pay us to be faithful to the end.

Vol. 25, p.12
I pray God that this may be our lot, that we may be true and faithful
unto death, and inherit eternal life, for Jesus' sake. Amen. [p.13]

George Teasdale, January 13, 1884

Joseph Smith's Testimony Never Proven False—Primitive Organization of
the
Church—Work of Christ not Completed When He Said, "It is Finished"—Why
 Should So Much Fault Be Found With the Latter-Day Saints?—The World's
Objection to
"Mormonism"—History of the Apostles—Authority to Preach the Gospel
Restored—
Temples—Baptism for the Dead—Book of Mormon—Restoration of the
Priesthood—
Cause of Persecution—No Surrender—Plural Marriage

Delivered in the Assembly Hall, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon,
 January 13th, 1884.

(Reported By John Irvine.)

Vol. 25, p.13
I likewise can bear my testimony to the truth of this work that the
world please to call Mormonism. The "Mormon" problem" is very easily
defined if we consider the pretensions of the people called "Mormons."
From the time that Joseph Smith first declared that he had had a
vision of the Father and the Son—from that time to the present, I know
that the world have never been able to prove that his testimony was
false. I know that they have never been able to prove that Moroni did
not give to him the plates of gold, or that the translation called the
Book of Mormon is false. I know that they have never been able to
prove that John the Baptist did not visit Joseph Smith and Oliver
Cowdery, and confer upon them the Holy Priesthood, even the Aaronic
Priesthood; neither have I ever heard that it has been proved that the
Melchisedek Priesthood and Apostleship were not restored by Peter,
James and John. There has been a great deal said about Mormonism;
quite a number of books written upon the subject; a great deal of
derision has been made of it; but the testimony of the Latter-day
Saints has never been proven to be false.

Vol. 25, p.13
We have declared to the world that God has spoken from the heavens;
that angels have appeared to the children of men; and that the keys of
the Priesthood and intelligence have been restored to the earth—and we
know it. We have invited the people to search the Scriptures to see if
these things were not predicted—to find out if it had not been
declared therein that it should come to pass in the last days that the
God of heaven would establish His Kingdom upon the earth. There had to
be a commencement. We read in the Bible that God set in the Church
firstly Apostles, then Prophets, then Evangelists, and Teachers, for
the work of the ministry and for the edifying of the body of Christ.
Paul declared that the Saints were the body of Christ, members in
particular, and he bore the same testimony to the Corinthians that he
bore to the Ephesians, concerning the fact that God had [p.14] set in
the Church firstly. Apostles, then Prophets, etc. Might I ask where
the revelation is that at any time set in the Church firstly Popes,
then Cardinals, Archbishops, and Right Reverend Fathers in God? Might
I ask where the revelation is authorizing the establishment of the
Episcopal Church? Might I ask where the revelation is authorizing the
alteration of the order of government which God had set in the Church?
We are calmly told that these things are done away with. Who says so?
Men whose business it is to try and prevent people from thinking for
themselves, and to do the thinking for them. But as a responsible
being I am bound to do my own thinking; and when it comes to a
question of my eternal welfare, I take the liberty to think for
myself. I am told that holy men of old wrote and spoke as they were
moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and that the Scriptures were not to be
understood by private interpretation. I believe as a child of God,
that I have a right to receive intelligence, for it was predicted ages
ago that God would give to those who loved Him line upon line, precept
upon precept, here a little and there a little, until they were
perfected. The object of the Apostleship was the edification of the
Saints. Now, I can understand the value of this Apostleship. Those who
hold it are to be taught by the revelations of God, and have authority
to call upon men everywhere to repent, to believe in the living and
true God, to cease from their heresies, to cease from their wickedness
and abominations, to lead perfect and pure lives, and to give them the
privilege of being baptized by immersion for the remission of sins,
and to have hands laid upon them, that they may receive the Holy
Ghost. This, we are given to understand by the historians, was the
manner in which the Kingdom of God was established in the days of the
Savior, and if it had remained upon the earth there would have been a
continuation of the Apostleship.

Vol. 25, p.14
When Jesus said, "It is finished," He did not give us to understand
that the whole work was finished so far as we were concerned as
individuals; because the last instructions that He gave to His
Apostles, as recorded by the historian Mark, and which were given
after His crucifixion and resurrection were: "Go ye into all the
world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and
is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
And these signs shall follow them that believe: in my name they shall
cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up
serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them;
they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover." And we are
told that the Apostles went and preached this doctrine; called upon
men everywhere to repent of their sins, called upon them to repent of
their false modes and manner of worship. They preached exclusive
salvation. They had the only way to be saved. This was what rendered
them so unpopular. This is what renders us so unpopular to day. But if
we preach the same doctrine, if we have similar power, if God has
spoken from the heavens and has declared to His children the necessity
of their repentance, and has chosen men to hold the Priesthood, and go
forth to the nations of the earth; if this is the case, where will the
wicked and ungodly be? I think, myself, it should be a matter of
interest to  all classes of people, especially rulers, to make
themselves [p.15] acquainted with the doctrines of the Latter-day
Saints, with the principles which they teach, so that they may act in
wisdom. They have to give all account of the deeds done in the body;
they will have to stand before the bar of God; their record will be
there; and I say it is to the individual interest of every man,
whether he is a king or a beggar, to make his record of such a
character that he will dare to meet it; because as sure as we live
to-day, we shall have to face the record we make upon earth.

Vol. 25, p.15
Now, why should so much fault be found with the Latter-day Saints?
Right here, I would ask, why should so much fault have been found with
the Lord Jesus Christ? Why should so much fault have been found with
the Apostles and their followers? Why did they not, when they found it
was distasteful to the majority of the people, give up their belief
and become one with them, as we are kindly invited to do? Why did they
not, in the midst of their persecutions—when they were being torn to
pieces by wild beasts, etc.,—rise up and say: "Will it not be better,
seeing our religion is so distasteful to mankind, to stop our mode of
worship, and worship with the majority?" Why, they never dreamed of
such a thing. I have never heard of a faithful man that ever lived who
dreamed of such a thing as giving up that which he believed to be true
for the sake of the approbation even of millions, Joseph Smith, the
Prophet, Seer and Revelator, stood alone and declared that God had
spoken from the heavens, and when people believed his testimony, when
they accepted the doctrines he taught, God bore witness to them that
he was a true Prophet. They discovered that the doctrine which he
taught was that which was taught anciently; they discovered by the
revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ, that in the last days the
Kingdom of God was to be established upon the earth; and in their
simplicity they believed that it had to be commenced with a few; and
that it had to commence wherever the Great Eternal determined that it
should commence. He revealed Himself that He might have a testator on
the earth who knew that He lived, who knew that Jesus was the Christ.
He revealed Himself to the boy Joseph Smith, who had sought Him in
perfect faith. And, then, in order that the world might be left
without excuse, when He sent the angel Moroni to reveal the history of
the house of Jacob on this continent, He did not have the fact of his
visit dependent upon the testimony of one man. Others were privileged
to receive the visits of heavenly messengers, that in the mouth of two
or three witnesses, every word should be established. When did the
three witnesses—Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris—ever
declare otherwise than that they saw an angel, and that they heard the
voice of God declare that the book called the Book of Mormon, had been
translated by the power of God? They were never known—though they left
the Church—to have flinched from that testimony, and their testimony
is as good as the testimony of any body else. It never has been
impeached. And then again: Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith both
declared that John the Baptist came and laid his hands upon their
heads and ordained them to the Aaronic Priesthood. Who had any idea
that there was any necessity for John the Baptist to come? Where were
there any records to that effect? And yet we are told [p.16]
emphatically that John the Baptist was the forerunner of Christ. But
the world contend that he filled his mission as the forerunner of
Christ in His first coming. I will take the privilege of questioning
that, if you please, and will tell you why I do so. By referring to
the 40th chapter of Isaiah, we there find these words: "Comfort ye,
comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to
Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that
her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand
double for all her sins." It then goes on to say: "The voice of him
that crieth in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make
strait in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be
exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low." Now, when
John the Baptist came, did he speak comforting words to Jerusalem?
When the Priests and Pharisees—those professedly holy men—came to him
to be baptized in Jordan, what did he say to them? "O generation of
vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring
forth fruits meet for repentance, etc." He was the forerunner of
Christ. He declared so himself. The Lord Jesus bore testimony of him.
He said: "This is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send my
messenger before thy face, which shall prepare the way before time."
Now, it is true that John the Baptist came as the forerunner of Jesus;
it is true that he filled his mission so far; but we know very well
that the people generally did not receive him, and ultimately they
beheaded him. We know that they did not receive Jesus. They crucified
Him. Instead of speaking comforting words to Jerusalem, He exclaimed:
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the Prophets, and stonest
them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy
children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her
wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you
desolate." Were these comforting words to Jerusalem? I think not. It
is very evident that John the Baptist was not only the forerunner of
His first coming, but also of His second advent. The Scriptures are
plain on this matter.

Vol. 25, p.16
But let us follow the history of the Apostles, and what do we find
Martyrdom for every one of them, John the Revelator alone excepted.
What do we find concerning the Saints? Cruel persecution and death,
until, in consequence of the awful crime of the shedding of innocent
blood, God in His displeasure withdrew the Priesthood from the earth,
and left it as it was before. the coming of the Messiah, without.
divine authority. Was this statement of things predicted? Most
assuredly it was predicted by the Prophets of old. It was foretold by
Paul, who declared that after his departure grievous wolves would
enter in among the flocks and destroy them. He also beseeches the
Thessalonians not to be soon shaken, or troubled, in regard to the day
of Christ being at hand. He told them not to be deceived by any means:
"for that day shall not, come, except there come a falling away
first." Has there been a falling away? Why, the prediction is verified
by every sect in Christendom, when they calmly tell us that the
spiritual gifts of the Gospel have been done away with, and that they
are no longer needed. I argue that if is just as necessary to-day—if
God is an unchangeable God, if He is the  same yesterday, to-day and
[p.17] forever—that we should enjoy the spiritual gifts of the Gospel
as in former days, above all the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, the
spirit of truth by which I may comprehend the relationship that exists
between me as an individual here upon the earth and my Father who is
in heaven. By carefully reading the revelations of St. John, you will
find the apostasy foretold. You will find the Church represented as a
woman surrounded by twelve stars. You will also find the history of
the bringing forth of the Priesthood, and of the woman going into the
wilderness for a season. You will also find the history of the
establishment of the church of Satan—which is likewise represented by
a woman sitting upon a scarlet colored beast; she was proclaimed the
Mother of Harlots—a church that was to hold dominion over all the
nations of the earth. John also saw the restoration of the everlasting
Gospel, as proclaimed in Revelations, 14th chapter and 6th verse: "And
I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting
Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice,
Fear God and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come;
and worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the
fountains of water." Now, if the Gospel was upon the earth, there
certainly would be no necessity of an angel bringing the Gospel; there
would be no necessity for the restoration of any thing that had not
been lost. But seeing that this order of government had been lost—this
order of Priesthood—this authority which was given unto the ancient
Apostles—it was absolutely essential that it should be restored,
otherwise, how could the Gospel of the Kingdom be preached in all the
world for a witness before the second advent of the Lord Jesus Christ?
For Christ Himself declared: "This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be
preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then
shall the end come."

Vol. 25, p.17
Now, is it not tidings of great joy to learn that God has spoken from
the heavens; to know that there are men upon the earth who have
authority to preach the Gospel; to know that we can receive a
remission of our sins, that we can be made clean, and that we can be
taught the ways of the Lord, that we may walk in His paths? Is not
this tidings of great joy when we think of the confusion and ignorance
that exists in the world to-day? To all reasoning men it must be a
source of great consolation. I know it is a cause of great joy to me
to know that the Apostleship has been restored, to know that these
principles are true and faithful; that God is the same yesterday,
today and forever, when faith is manifested; that the signs follow
thrift believer according to his faith; and that all who do the will
of the Father are most assuredly put in the possession of the
knowledge that the principles that were taught by the Messiah and by
His Apostles are true.

Vol. 25, p.17
Since I last had the privilege of bearing my testimony from this
stand, I have visited the temple of God at St. George, and spent a
season there, and I want to bear my testimony to the truth of the
doctrine of baptism for the dead. When Paul was arguing with the
Corinthians, some of them were foolish enough to contend that there
was no resurrection; they had believed, had been baptized, and they
had been a certain portaion of time [p.18] in the Church; but their
traditions and their lack of understanding caused them to believe that
there was no such thing as the resurrection. Paul, in his argument,
made use of the following language: "Else what shall they do which are
baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then
baptized for the dead?" Do you know why the ancient Saints were
baptized for the dead, and do you know why Paul used this argument
when they were disputing this principle of the resurrection? We do,
for God has revealed it. He says: "Why stand we in jeopardy every
hour? If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus,
what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? Let us eat and drink;
for to-morrow we die." Now, don't you think it would have been wise in
Paul to have taken the advice that some of our friends pretend to give
us? Don't you think it would have been wise in Paul, when he stood in
jeopardy every day, to give up those principles which rendered him so
unpopular among the people The same question is propounded to us
to-day. People say, "Give up your religion; it is unpopular; we don't
like it, and we are fifty millions strong. We want you to please do as
we do, say as we say, and be as we are." But in order to make the
thing not quite so glaring—not quite so gross an injustice—they say,
"Will you please give up your plural marriage and do as we do? If you
must have a plurality of women, marry one and keep the others and
raise illegitheate children as we do." That is the English of it. It
may be distasteful to tell so much truth in one afternoon; but that is
the English of it. I have traveled in a few of the nations of the
earth; I have seen some of their finest cities; and I have seen the
effects of the workings of what is termed high Christian civilization.

Vol. 25, p.18
But before referring to this allow me to go back a little with regard
to the pretensions of Joseph Smith because this is the "Mormon"
problem; "it lies in a nutshell." Joseph Smith was a true Prophet sent
of God, or he was not. He held the keys and powers of the Priesthood,
or he did not. These he conferred upon other men in the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints before his death. Now, those upon
whom he conferred these keys have the Apostleship, or they have not;
they have the authority of God, or they have not; they hold the keys
of the Priesthood, or they do not; God our Eternal Father, reveals His
mind and will from the heavens to His children in these valleys of the
Rocky Mountains, or He does not. We testify He does.

Vol. 25, p.18
Without quoting any more Scripture, let us reason together a little
while. Who knew of the necessity of the Aaronic and Melchisedek
Priesthood? Joseph Smith had a vision of the Father and the Son. Who
ever conceived of the necessity of such a vision? There was an absence
of the knowledge of God. The world by wisdom know not God. The being
that is worshipped by so-called Christianity, is a being without a
body, parts or passions. In order that He might have a testator upon
the earth, God revealed Himself, so that we might understand a little
concerning the personality of God; as it is written, we are created in
His image. Then the Book of Mormon was brought forth. Jesus Christ
declared, "other sheep I have, which are not of this fold." Those
"other sheep" had to be visited; and the Book of Mormon gives us a
history of  Christ's visit [p.19] to them—the aborigines of this
continent, called the American Indians, but really the descendants of
Jacob. We have given unto us within the lids of this book (Book of
Mormon) the fullness of the everlasting Gospel. We have the principles
of the Gospel laid down in their simplicity—plainer by far than in the
Bible, though agreeing with that sacred record. It is in reality the
stick of Judah that is contained in the Bible; the stick of Ephraim is
contained in the Book of Mormon. Isaiah prophesied concerning the
coming forth of this book. In fact the writings of the Prophets are
pregnant with predictions concerning the establishment of the Kingdom
of God in the latter days.

Vol. 25, p.19
Joseph Smith declared that John the Baptist came and restored the
Aaronic Priesthood, and also that Peter, James and John restored the
Apostleship, and the keys and powers thereof. Please tell me who it
was that put it into the heart of this so called impostor (Joseph
Smith) regarding the coming forth of this book? Will you please tell
me where he acquired the wisdom to concoct such a record? Who taught
Joseph Smith the necessity of the Aaronic and Melchisedek Priesthoods?
Who taught Joseph Smith the perfect system of the organization of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Who taught him the
necessity of three High Priests presiding Over the Church of Christ
like unto Peter, James and John? Who taught him the necessity of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and of their powers and duties and the
presidency thereof? Who taught him the necessity of the High
Priesthood in their presidings? Who taught him the necessity of the
Seventies and their organization? Who taught him the necessity of the
Elders' Quorum, the Priests' Quorum, the Teachers' Quorum, and the
Deacons' Quorum? Who taught him the organization of the Stakes of Zion
with their presidency, their High Council, their Bishops, Teachers,
etc? Who taught him the necessity of baptism by immersion for the
remission of sins, and the laying on of hands for the reception of the
Holy Ghost? Who taught him the necessity of holding keys of
Priesthood, and that God would reveal principles through this channel
that had been hidden from before the foundation of the world? Who
taught him of the pre-existence of the spirit of man? Who taught him
the philosophy of our probation upon the earth, and the results that
would flow from a faithful observance of the principles of
righteousness? He declared that Jesus Christ taught him; he declared
that all these things were received through the revelations of the
Lord Jesus Christ to him. When people say that Joseph Smith was an
impostor, they make him one of the greatest men that ever lived in
view of the religion he founded. Again, who taught him the necessity
of marriage for eternity? Who taught him the doctrine of baptism for
the dead? Who taught him the principles of the resurrection and
eternal judgment, as described in this Book of Doctrine and Covenants?
I answer, God the Eternal Father.

Vol. 25, p.19
Now, will you please tell me why the world are so embittered against
us as a people? I will tell you. It is upon the same principle that
they were embittered against the Messiah. The Messiah came with His
bowels filled with compassion and love for the human family. He taught
them how to be saved to the uttermost. [p.20] He taught them exclusive
salvation. Joseph Smith was a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, and
acted under His instructions. His life and works boldly tell that he
was no impostor: He was, indeed and of a truth, a true Prophet of God.
He declared the principles of eternal life, and those principles have
been carried to the nations of the earth. What has followed the
preaching of the Gospel? Judgment, calamity and desolation have come,
in many instances, upon those who have rejected it; upon those who
have cast us out and spurned the message of life and salvation: for it
has been decreed by the Almighty. The hour of His judgment has come.
You take this large congregation. If they had the opportunity of
testifying, they would declare in words of soberness that God had
revealed to them the principles of the Gospel, and that it was for
that reason that they left the States, the islands of the sea, the
nations of Europe, and came to this country; it was because they
received a knowledge that these principles were true. They had been
impressed by His Spirit to gather here; it is the gathering of Israel.
In doing this they were told by their friends that they were deceived;
but I ask any man who has accepted these principles, who has practiced
them in solid faith, if he has ever been deceived? Never, no never.
God has been true to His word. He has done His part. He has placed us
in the possession of a knowledge of these principles, He has brought
us home to Zion from the various nations where we were scattered. He
has taught us the principles of righteousness through His appointed
channel, by His Holy Spirit, and woe be unto us if we harden our
hearts and close our ears against the pleadings of the Holy Ghost. We
should sanctify ourselves before, the Lord, and live holy and pure
lives. We are living in the last days, We have no time to trifle. We
are in the midst of the judgments of Almighty God. He has declared
that desolation should cover the earth, and that He would waste the
inhabitants away who would not listen to His voice. How can the
Latter. day Saints escape if they neglect so great a salvation? We are
called upon to be ministers of righteousness. We are building temples.
We have no right in those temples unless we can go in as saviors upon
Mount Zion. We never can be upon Mount Zion unless we save ourselves
from this untoward generation. We must practice the principles of
righteousness. We must give up our follies, our light speeches, our
loud laughter and our inhuman feeling with regard to our children
placing them in a position where they are under the dominion of
Belial, and under that influence that would wean them from the
principles of righteousness. We must repent of our sins. We must
listen to the voice of God through His servants. We must sanctify
ourselves before Him or we cannot assist Him in the establishment of
His righteousness upon the earth. You know this as well as I do. What
right have I to require of anybody what I will not do myself. What
right have I to expect of anybody what I do not do myself? No, we must
save ourselves. We must make our calling and election sure. Who is
afraid to die but the sinner? Who is afraid of death but those who
have sinned and who dread to meet the consequence of those sins behind
the veil? But those who love the principles of righteousness and who
practice them know that they have passed  from death unto [p.21] life.
They know that they are redeemed through the precious blood of the
Redeemer. When they pass into the spirit world it is not in blindness.
They know that they are going into the presence of the Lamb, and the
Church of the First Born. They know that they belong to that Church,
and they also know whether they have kept their garments clean or not.
Have we any occasion to fear the people? Have we any occasion to fear
nations? Do we fear when we go forth in their midst, traveling one or
two at a time in the midst of our enemies with threatenings on every
hands? Do we fear under those circumstances? No; and if we can trust
ourselves in the hands of God, under those conditions, I think we can
trust Him to-day. And as far as I am concerned as an individual, not
one principle that God has revealed from the heavens do I dare to go
back on—not one principle. I believe in the fullness of the
everlasting Gospel. I believe in plural marriage as a part of the
Gospel, just as much as I believe in baptism by immersion for the
remission of sins. The same Being who taught me baptism for the
remission of sins, taught me plural marriage, and its necessity and
glory. Can I afford to give up a single principle? I can not. If I had
to give up one principle I would have to give up my religion. If I
gave up the first principle of the revelations of the Lord, I would
prove before my brethren, before the angels, before God the Eternal
Father, that I was unworthy the exaltation that He has promised me. I
do not know how you feel; but I do not fear the face of man as I fear
the face of God. I fear lest when I go behind the veil and have to
meet my progenitors, that I should meet them as a traitor, as a man
who had not the backbone to stand by the principles of righteousness
for fear of my life; or for fear of some calamity that might come upon
me. How would they look upon me? How we would be condemned if we dared
suggest such a thing as to say that we would give up the first
principle of eternal truth! I bear my solemn testimony that plural
marriage is as true as any principle that has been revealed from the
heavens. I bear my testimony that it is a necessity, and that the
Church of Christ in its fullness never existed without it. Where you
have the eternity of marriage you are bound to have plural marriage;
bound to; and it is one of the marks of the Church of Jesus Christ in
its sealing ordinances. "Whatever you bind on earth is bound in
heaven." We know how sensitive the Prophet Joseph was to introduce
this principle. He knew the feeling that was against it. It had been
taught from the days of heathen Rome down to the present time that a
man should have but one wife, which has resulted in the prostitution
of many of the fair daughters of Eve as mistresses. Here we have too
much love for woman to see them trampled in the dust. Here we have too
much respect for unborn spirits to have them come into the world
branded as bastards, illegitheate, in shame, without knowing their
fathers. The children we have are legitheate. They are our own. We
honor them and our wives. Our children are given unto us of God, for
our wives are given to us of God. We never should have thought of
practicing this principle if God had not revealed it from the heavens
and commanded it, and we must stand by it and by every principle that
He has revealed. It is more than I dare, to go back on that principle
or any [p.22] other principle; and I have besought the Lord with all
my heart that He would give me strength according to my day that I
might never fail in my integrity, but that I might stand firm as the
pillars of heaven to the truths that He has revealed for the
redemption of the human family. I understand my own weaknesses; I
understand my own insufficiency; but my trust is in the living and
true God. And I have a testimony that for over thirty years He has
sustained me through some very crooked and tight places by His
Almighty power. He has stood by me, been my friend; and so far my
testimony and my love for the principles of righteousness are as deep
and earnest as my first love, and more so; for I have witnessed His
loving kindness in the sealing powers and bonds of the everlasting
covenant; I have been privileged to see the magnificent manner in
which He has provided for His children, in placing them in a position
that they may become like unto Him—eternal, without end of years.

Vol. 25, p.22
That God may give us grace to stand true and faithful to our
covenants, and endure to the end, is my prayer in the name of Jesus
Christ, Amen.

George Q. Cannon, January 6, 1884

Testimonies of the Servants of God—Illogical Manner in Which They Are
Met
—Only True Way to Obtain a Knowledge of the Gospel—Secret of the
Strength
 of the Church of Christ—Work to Be Accomplished—Struggle Between
Satan and
 God—Influence Brought to Bear Against the Saints

Delivered in the Assembly Hall, Salt Lake City,
Sunday Afternoon, January 6th, 1884.

(Reported By John Irvine.)

Vol. 25, p.22
The testimonies of the servants of God, which we hear so frequently
from this stand, ought to make an impression upon the minds of those
who hear them—they ought to have weight, for the reason that those who
bear them declare in solemnity, in the presence of God, that they know
that which they testify is true; and when a man, or any number of men,
arise in the presence of their fellow men, and declare in words of
truth and soberness, that certain things are true, that  they know
them to be true, that they are willing to bear testimony of them
[p.23] before God and the people, and to suffer all thing for their
truth, even to death itself, it should make an impression upon the
human mind, and inspire those who hear these testimonies with a
disposition to at least investigate and withhold their condemnation.
Because, unless a malt knows something to the contrary, unless he has
had a testimony that these things are false, he is not justified in
condemning them. There is only one way in which they can be fairly
condemned, and that is by proving their falsity, by obtaining
knowledge that is directly in contradiction to that which is borne
testimony to. In this consists the condemnation of the inhabitants of
the earth at the present time, as it has consisted in every age when
God has had a work to do upon the earth. Certain men have gone forward
in the midst of their fellow men, and in solemnity and in truth have
testified that God has spoken, that God has given revelations, that
God is doing a certain work in the earth of which they are the
witnesses. They know this, they say, for themselves and bear testimony
of it, and exhort their fellow men to seek for knowledge in the same
manner in which they have sought for it, with an assurance that if
they do so they will obtain knowledge. Now, notwithstanding men have
done this, the world, without pretending to have any counter
demonstration or testimony, without being able to disprove by the same
sort of evidence, condemn wholesale, without discrimination or
hesitation those testimonies and declare them to be false, and assert
that the men who bear them are either deceived themselves or are
striving to deceive somebody else.

Vol. 25, p.23
I do not think this is fair. It never was fair. It is not a proper
method of dealing with affairs of this character; because if there is
a God, and one man says he has had communication with Him, and
another, who believes also, or professes to believe in God, denies
that the first has had any such communication, and yet does not
pretend that God told him any such thing, does not pretend to have had
any communication from God—the contradiction of the one is not equal
to the affirmation of the other. It is the height of presumption for a
man who professes to believe in God, to rise up and at his own
instance and of his own will, because he chooses to take that view of
God, and of God's method of dealing with man, and declare that the
testimony of the man who says he has had revelation from God is false.
Why, anyone at a glance can see that it is an improper way to deal
with the subject. If he does not have revelation himself from God, he
should, at least, be modest in contradicting the testimony of others
who declare that they have had revelation from Him. The whole
religious world in Christendom profess to believe in God. They declare
that God lives and are continually preaching to the people a belief in
Him, a belief in Jesus, saying that Jesus is the Son of God, that He
lived upon the earth in the flesh, that He has gone to the Father, and
that they are His ministers, having power to do certain things in His
name, and to teach His doctrines. They say to the people who do not
listen to them: "You will be visited with the most terrible judgments
if you do not believe what we say; you will go to hell, and you will
burn there throughout the countless ages of eternity, if you do not
believe what we tell you." Now, when men go to their fellow men and
make such statements as [p.24] these, and assume such prerogatives and
powers as these, and say that their fellow men will be condemned by
wholesale to eternal hell for not listening to them, they certainly
ought to have some method of communicating with the Being they
represent, and whose ministers they profess to be, and they ought to
know more than other men—more than common men at least—about the Being
who, they say, sends them as His ministers. But what are the facts?
Here is Brother Woodruff, who for the last half century has been
testifying, as he has this afternoon in your hearing, with all the
energy of his soul—for he has been a very zealous man all his days—he
has been testifying to all people to whom he could get access, that
God has spoken from the heavens and restored the plan of salvation in
its ancient parity, and the Church as it was organized upon the earth
in the days of Jesus, with the plenitude of its gifts and powers and
graces, and that this condition of things now exists upon the earth,
and that he is a living witness of it; that God has really revealed
this to him, so that he has become a witness through revelation from
God, of its truth. He has declared this. Hundreds have made a similar
declaration, and hundreds are still testifying concerning these things
to the inhabitants of the earth. But Christendom through some of its
principal representatives says: "We don't believe a word you say. We
don't believe God has spoken to you. We don't believe God has given
you any authority. We don't believe your doctrine to be from God. We
don't believe that the church you have organized, and that you declare
is the Church of Christ, is the Church of Christ; and so confident are
we of this that we believe that it would be justifiable for you to be
killed as a lot of impostors and dangerous men, and you ought to be
broken up. If it should be necessary to do this, and it cannot be done
any other way, we would be willing to have armies resort to violence
and have bloodshed, rather than such a dreadful heresy and such a
wicked system should be perpetuated on the earth."

Vol. 25, p.24
You turn to them to these men who profess to have the fate of their
fellow beings in their hands, whose efforts, as they state, will send
millions to heaven and millions to hell —you ask these men who profess
to have such awful powers as this—"By what authority do you make these
statements? Has God given you any testimony that the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints is not the true Church? Has God told you
anything about it?"

Vol. 25, p.24
"Oh, no," they will say, "God has not spoken to us. We do not believe
He talks to anybody. We believe he has stopped all communication with
man; that no living man has heard His voice, or knows anything about
His mind and will."

Vol. 25, p.24
Now, this is their testimony. You cannot get any of them at least I
have not, and I speak so far as my own personal knowledge goes to
declare that God has revealed to them either by the spirit of prophecy
or by the manifestations of the Holy Ghost, that the doctrines taught
by the "Mormon" people are false, or that the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints is not of God, and yet, notwithstanding this,
they take the course that I now describe. Here on one side is
knowledge—at least it purports to be knowledge. Here are men who say
they have actually received revelations from  God; that God has poured
out the Holy Ghost upon men and women; that [p.25] Jesus has actually
visited the earth in person, and been seen by living men; and that
angels have been seen and conversed with by living men. They state
this in all solemnity and in all truth, and as a test of the sincerity
of their statements, they say to their fellow men: "If you will take a
certain course that God has pointed out, and that we are authorized to
designate; if you will take this certain course, you shall know also
of the truth of our testimony. We do not make these statements
expecting you to receive them simply because we make them; but we say
to you, if you will take this course, if you will accept the
conditions which God has prescribed and comply with them in sincerity
and humlity, you shall receive these blessings and this testimony for
yourselves, and you then will be numbered as witnesses with us."

Vol. 25, p.25
What can be fairer than this? And this is the course that the servants
of God have always taken with mankind, and hence, as I have said, the
condemnation of the inhabitants of the earth, because they will not
receive that testimony. They abuse the Church of Christ without having
reason or foundation for doing so; they abuse it without having any
evidence that is at all tangible or that can be relied upon; they have
nothing more than their personal feelings, personal prejudice, and
their personal tradition—that which they have inherited from their
fathers—upon which to base their opposition.

Vol. 25, p.25
Now, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been built up
in this manner. Its strength consists in this peculiarity: that those
who have embraced it as a rule—there may be exceptions—have taken the
course which has been taught by the servants of God, and the result is
that legions of witnesses have been raised up. It is not confined to
one; it is not confined to the original few; but this testimony has
extended itself, until it has brought within its fold men and women of
almost every race; for it is not confined, happily, to sex no more
than it is to nationality, but it is extended unto men of every race,
and unto women of every race, and all these rise up as an army of
witnesses, unanimously bearing testimony of the same great truths,
declaring that it is not from their fathers, it is not from tradition,
it is not from their teachers, it is not from any human source that
they have derived their knowledge; but that God Himself, by His
invisible power, by His superhuman power, by the outpouring of the
Holy Ghost upon them, has borne testimony to them, so that they are
thoroughly convinced and have a knowledge as strong as the knowledge
that they themselves live, that this is the work of God, that He has
established it, and that He will roll it forth and cause it to
accomplish all that He has said it would. It is in this peculiarity
that the strength of the people consists. If it was not for this we
should be as weak as a rope of sand; there would be no cohesiveness or
strength about us. But with this there is a power that makes hell
tremble. It makes the Devil mad. It makes every man that is afraid of
the truth angry in his spirit because of that which he sees. If men
were not afraid of truth there would be no fear connected with this
work. What is there about it to create fear? What is there in its
manifestations, in its fruits, and in its operations upon the minds of
the children of men to cause any man who loves truth to have any dread
concerning it? Nothing whatever. [p.26] It is beneficent in its
operations. It elevates men and women; it makes them better, purer,
more God-like, more orderly. It bestows blessings —this system
does—upon all who espouse it, and all who come within the range of its
influence. And this has been its characteristic ever since its
organization until to-day. You know it, each of you who have espoused
it. You know its effects upon you. You know it has made you better
men. You know it has made you men of purer lives, of loftier desires,
of more God-like aspirations. You all know this. Every man, every
woman, and every child connected with this work is a witness of the
truth of this. If it has this effect upon you, will it not have the
same effect upon every human being who comes within the range of its
influence and who bows in submission to its requirements? Certainly it
will. There is no human being, however low, that it will not elevate,
if he will obey it. It is the power and lever, so to speak, by which
humanity will be elevated to the presence of God our Eternal Father,
for the very reason that the exaltation which God has attained to, has
been through obedience to these self-same laws that are now taught to
us. That which obeyeth law is preserved and sanctified by law. The
people who obey law will be exalted by law; they will be preserved by
it, they will be sanctified by it; and that is the effect of the
teaching of the Gospel upon the Latter-day Saints.

Vol. 25, p.26
While Brother Woodruff was talking, I thought what an immense labor it
is to endeavor to accomplish that which the Prophets have told us will
be brought to pass in the last days. I look at this people so
comparatively few in numbers, and at the immense work that is to be
accomplished, and it seems an herculean, an impossible labor to the
natural vision. It seems as if no human beings could accomplish it.
But God has spoken concerning this work. His word has gone forth, and
it cannot fail. This work will be accomplished, and it will be
accomplished by the operation of truth. As Brother Woodruff has said,
there is a power connected with truth, that when brought to bear upon
bureau beings, has the effect that he has described, and has the
effect that the Prophets have predicted concerning the last days.
There will be a power exercised in our behalf, increasing as we are
prepared to receive it; for this people with all their weaknesses, and
they are many, are nevertheless drawing nearer and nearer to God every
day, and faith is increasing in their midst. A generation of boys and
girls are growing up who will have greater faith than their
predecessors, their parents, have had, and the work will continue to
grow and spread. And there is this to be taken into consideration, God
having predicted the ushering in of the last dispensation, knowing the
odds that would have to be contended with in establishing it: God
knowing this has reserved in the heavens to come forth at this time
the noblest of His spirits, the men and women most capable of carrying
out this work, and achieving the grand results the Prophets have
predicted should be accomplished in the day and generation,
preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. God knowing this, in His
wisdom and foreknowledge has prepared the way beforehand, and there
will be men and women brought forth who will carry off this work in
the way He designs. Step by step, the adversary of God, that is the
adversary of all truth, will have to recede. [p.27] The struggle is
between Satan and God. The struggle is for the supremacy of this
earth, and you may depend upon it, it will not be given up without a
mighty wrestle. The adversary has wielded this power now for nearly
2,000 years—1,400 years and upwards on this continent. For this period
he has held undisturbed sway, it may be said—that is, if not entirely
true it is nearly true in saying it has been undisturbed. There have
occasionally some persons arisen who have endeavored to stem the tide
of wickedness that the devil has caused to flow over the earth; but
there has been no Priesthood on the earth, no organized church, no
organized power, through whom God could operate, and you may depend
upon it, now that there is one, there will be a mighty struggle. It
will cost the best efforts of which we are capable, to lay the
foundation so successfully that it shall not be overturned, to prepare
the way for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every kind of
opposition will be brought against this work. There is nothing that
you can conceive of that will be kept back, and it will come upon us
as fast as we are able to bear it. It is only the power of God that
restrains our enemies from overwhelming us. If it were not that God
has said this shall not be, and has told us that He will establish
this work never mole to be thrown down, we would not be able to stand.
But victory will perch upon our banners, and will do so until the end.
But it will not be without a mighty warfare, the hostility against
this work will be continuous. No man need calculate on anything else.
Why, just think of the results that are to be wrought out. Just think
of what depends upon our labors and upon this contest? We have been
gathering the people from Babylon through the power of God to build up
a Zion here. But see the results that attend our labors in this city
and in this Territory. It seems as though all hell is endeavoring to
defeat our object, and to defeat the cause of God in gathering the
people out from the nations of the earth. The adversary has said:

Vol. 25, p.27
"You shall not have a pure people; you shall not build up Zion; I will
bring all my forces to bear against this; I will destroy the work of
God; I will not allow the Priesthood of God to remain on the earth; I
will kill them off, or I will do everything in my power to cripple
them."

Vol. 25, p.27
Thus he brings every kind of influence to bear against this people. We
would have a pure people here; we would have a Zion such as the Bible
describes, if we were allowed; we would have a city in which angels
might walk in the streets all day, if we could have our way; but Satan
says: "You shall not. I will bring every power and influence to bear
against you. I will besmear you in every way I can, and will make you
so hateful in the eyes of all people, that they will come up against
and destroy you. You shall not build up Zion, if I can prevent it."

Vol. 25, p.27
And you see the result. Every power that is conceivable is brought to
bear against us. We are maligned. We are represented as everything
that is vile. Men think that in killing us they will be doing God
service; not because of our wickedness, but because they believe we
are wicked, because the adversary has had such power through falsehood
and misrepresentation, that men believe that they will be doing God
service in exterminating us from the face of the earth. "And what
[p.28] is it that restrains the efforts of our enemies? It is the
power of God only. We should be overwhelmed if it were not for this
invisible agency—invisible to us. There are legions of angels around
us. Their power is exerted in our behalf, and the results we can see
in the deliverances which are wrought out so miraculously for our
good. It is a cause of amazement how we are delivered from time to
time, so few in numbers, and so hated as we are. Our friends are
filled with astonishment. Every few days, every few weeks, or every
few months, they think that something is going to occur, that will
cause our destruction—I mean friends who have not the faith and the
knowledge that we have. But this work of our God will go forth,
despite all the opposition that will be brought against it. It will
win, because it is true. As we have been told by Brother Woodruff, the
eternal principles of truth are on the earth now in an organized form,
and you cannot kill them unless you kill the people themselves. There
is no way to stop this work, except by the extirpation of the
"Mormons," or Latter-day Saints, root and branch! No other method can
destroy them but that, and God will not permit it. His Priesthood is
on the earth, and it will remain on the earth. You may kill off a few,
still the Priesthood will remain, and it will exercise power in the
earth. It will unite the people, and the power of God will attend its
administration in the midst of the people. The honest will receive the
Holy Ghost, they will have a knowledge of this work for themselves,
and they will be ready to endure all the consequences that may attend
the espousal of the truth, just as their predecessors have done in
times that are past and in our own age. God will bless us if we seek
to do His will. Remember, my brethren and sisters, that that which
obeys law is preserved and sanctified by law. If you want to escape
evils, obey the law that God has revealed. Keep His commandments.
There is safety in this. It is a great work we are engaged in. The
desire I have for every man and woman of this Church is, that they may
he true, and that their children may live to be true to God in days to
come; for we are laying the foundation of a work that shall stand
undisturbed for one thousand years. Then, in the purposes of God,
Satan will be loosed again for a little season, but it will only be
for a little while. We are engaged in laying the foundations of that
work. It is the most glorious work that could be committed to man.
Angels delight in it, and we have the precious privilege of taking
part in it. We have difficulties to contend with, but let them come.
We will meet them, and what is better still, we will overcome them
through God's help, and our children will enjoy the blessings of
liberty. I trust and pray that of this people who have fought so
valiantly, and whose desires for the success of God's Kingdom are so
pure, there will be found men and women of their descent, who so long
as time shall last, shall stand up possessed of the Holy Priesthood in
the presence of God, to magnify it. This is my desire for myself, it
is my desire for my family, it is my desire for my brethren and
sisters throughout the Kingdom of God; and that God may grant that we
may be exalted in His presence when our work is done, is my prayer in
the name of Jesus. Amen. [p.29]

Erastus Snow, February 2, 1884

Near Coming of Christ—Work to Be Accomplished—Temples Already Built,
and
 Many More Yet to Be Built—Redemption of the Dead—Ezekiel's Vision—How
Long
 Will It Take to Warn the World?—Will the Lord Delay His Coming Until
All this
 Work is Accomplished?—Joseph Smith's Mission on Earth and Behind the
Veil—
Another Mission to Be Undertaken—The Resurrection of Joseph Smith
Near—
The Meaning of the Expression, "The Morning of the First
Resurrection."

Delivered in the Tabernacle, Logan, Saturday Afternoon,
 February 2nd, 1884.

Reported By John Irvine

Vol. 25, p.29
I am asked to speak, but I feel in attempting to do so that my speech
will be barren unless the Lord is pleased to inspire my mind by the
Holy Spirit. I know there is faith in the hearts of the people and the
Lord is able to give words of edification and comfort. I am not,
however, impressed with anything in particular, in the way of
doctrine, to speak to my brethren and sisters; I have only a feeling
to exhort in general terms.

Vol. 25, p.29
The Latter-day Saints realize as I do that every year brings us nearer
to the coming of our Lord; that every month and week and day that
passes over our heads, brings us nearer to the great and important
events that must transpire, and that it does not become us to give way
to a feeling of apathy and indifference, and to say in our hearts,
"The Lord delayeth His coming," and that to-morrow will be as this day
and much more abundant, and that the next generation will be like the
present, and as the world has continued to roll on, as generations
have come and generations have gone, so will it be with us and our
children. I say it does not become us to give way to these sentiments
and feelings which are common with unbelievers, with the world, or
with the unenlightened, who have not a knowledge of God, who have not
been favored with the light of revelation, who have not discerned the
signs of the times; for we are not the children of darkness, but the
children of light. Light has come unto us. We have been called but of
darkness unto light. We have been translated from the kingdom of
darkness unto the kingdom of God's dear Son, and therefore it may and
ought to be said of us as Saint Paul said concerning the Saints: "Ye,
brethren are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a
thief." It is written and we expect it to be fulfilled upon the heads
of the unbelieving end the wicked, that the Lord will overtake them as
a thief in the night. "In such an hour," [p.30] said the Savior, "as
ye think not, the Son of man cometh. Who then is a faithful and wise
servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give
them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when
he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall
make him ruler over all his goods. But, and if that evil servant shall
say in his heart, my lord delayeth his coming, and shall begin to
smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; the
lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him,
and in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and
appoint him his portion with the hypocrites." Now, it is not
impossible, nor yet improbable, that there will be some among the
Latter-day Saints who are called of God and appointed to this work,
and who are set over their fellow-servants to give them meat in due
season, who will be found negligent, who will have forgotten their
high and holy calling, who will have laid off their armor of
righteousness, who will have become slothful and weary in well doing,
and who will have taken to eating and drinking with the drunken and
smiting their fellow-servants; but as surely as any such are found
among the servants of God, they will be overtaken when the day of the
Lord cometh, and their portion will be appointed with hypocrites and
unbelievers. But we hope better things of the Elders of Israel, of
Presidents of Stakes, of Bishops, of High Counselors, of High Priests,
of Seventies, of Priests, Teachers and Deacons, and of all the
Latter-day Saints; for we have all been made partakers of this
Priesthood, and the blessings of the Lord, directly or indirectly,
have been conferred upon us.

Vol. 25, p.30
The work before us is a great one, and very much remaineth to be
accomplished according to the prophecies—Israel is to be gathered,
Jerusalem rebuilt, Zion established, the vineyard of the Lord pruned
and the corrupt branches cut off and cast into the fire, while the
good branches shall be grafted in and partake of the root and fatness
of the tame olive tree. There is a great work to be accomplished in
the earth. But the Lord has said by the mouth of His servants that He
will cut His work short in righteousness in building up His Kingdom in
the latter-days. True, when the Lord speaketh He does not reckon time
as we do. The time was, in the infancy of this Church, when our minds
were so narrow compared to what they are now, that we looked for the
speedy coming of our Lord, and the accomplishment of His great work
before this time. But as our minds grew, and our ideas enlarged, we
began to perceive that we were only children in our views and
feelings, our ideas and expectations. We had the views, ideas and
expectations of children; and we see how the Lord has enlarged Israel
and expanded His work; and now we behold so much more to be
accomplished than what has been accomplished, that we are apt in our
minds to put off the day of the Lord a great way. The time was that we
looked for one temple. The early revelations given to the Latter-day
Saints predicted a temple in Zion, and Zion in our minds at that time
was a little place on the Missouri River in Jackson County, Western
Missouri—a town and a few surrounding villages, or a country,
peradventure it may be as large as a county. When we first heard the
fullness of the Gospel  preached by [p.31] the first Elders, and read
the revelations given through the Prophet Joseph Smith, our ideas of
Zion were very limited. But as our minds began to grow and expand, why
we began to look upon Zion as a great people, and the Stakes of Zion
as numerous, and the area of the country to be inhabited by the people
of Zion as this great American continent, or at least such portions of
it as the Lord should consecrate for the gathering of His people. We
ceased to set bounds to Zion and her Stakes. We began also to cease to
think about a single temple in one certain place. Seeing the different
Stakes of Zion that were being organized we perceived the idea,
possibly, of as many temples. Having had one spot pointed out in the
revelations for the temple in Jackson County, our minds expanded so
that in a short time we were building another temple in a Stake of
Zion in Kirtland, Ohio. A little while afterwards we were laying the
foundation of a temple in Far West Missouri, and driven before our
enemies; from that place we next laid the foundation and built up a
temple unto the Lord in Nauvoo. When we located in the mountains and
laid the foundation of a temple in Salt Lake City, who of us had an
idea that before it should be completed we would be administering in a
temple in St. George, and another in Logan, and another in Manti, and
who conceives the idea to-day, that by the time these are completed
and the Saints have officiated in them, we will be scattered over the
American continent, building temples in e hundred other places? All
this comes within the range of possibility nay, probability, almost
amouting to certainty. One of my brethren behind me here, who
understands these things, and who can speak knowingly in regard to
them, says, that we may put it down as a certainty, that by and by,
there will be hundreds of these temples throughout the land. Our minds
are beginning to comprehend the object and purpose of the temples of
our God. We realize that they are places where the Lord bestows the
keys of life and salvation pertaining to the everlasting Priesthood,
and opens the door of redemption and salvation unto our dead. We begin
to comprehend a little of the vision shown to Ezekiel, as recorded in
the 37th chapter of his book. Ezekiel, while under the influence of
the Spirit of the Lord, was set down. in the midst of the valley which
was full of bones. He explored the valley, saw there were very many
bones, and, lo, they were very dry. The Lord commanded him to prophesy
concerning them, and he prophesied, saying: "O ye dry bones, hear the
word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones: Behold, I
will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: and I will lay
sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with
skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that
I am the Lord.	*	*	*	And the breath came unto them, and
they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
Then He said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of
Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dry, and our hope is lost: we
are cut off for our parts." Now, these were not the prophets and
saints and righteous dead who had been partakers of the blessings of
the Gospel and of the Priesthood, while in the flesh, but were those
who had passed off in a day of darkness, and in their lost condition
said to one another, and said in their hearts, "Our [p.32] bones are
dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts." But lo!
the plan of salvation for the dead is revealed. The scheme which the
Father had provided for the redemption of those whose hope was lost,
and who were cut off is revealed unto their children, unto those who
have been gathered from their long dispersion, and who have received
the keys of the Holy Priesthood, which bringeth life and salvation to
the dead as well as to the living. Having these keys corn mitred unto
us, we proceed to establish Zion; to build up her Stakes; to build her
temples; to gather together those who purify themselves before the
Lord, and qualify and fit themselves to become saviors upon Mount
Zion, by entering into holy places and officiating for themselves and
their dead, thus laying the foundation for the redemption of the dead
in being baptized for them, in being ordained for them, in being
blessed and endowed for them, in receiving the keys and the key-words
for them, that in the day when the Elders who have passed behind the
veil shall preach to them the Gospel of glad tidings of great joy, lo
and behold! they will receive it and will be put in possession of
those keys, endowments and blessings, whereby they may be freed from
their prison houses, and be raised from the dead, and stand upon their
feet an exceeding great army, and be restored to the blessings which
God promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their seed after them.

Vol. 25, p.32
Now, this is the work before us, and I want to ask my brethren, the
Elders of Israel, how long shall we be in accomplishing this work? Can
I tell you? No, it is not given me to know. It is sufficient for us to
know that the time has come for the work to be done: that the Lord has
turned the key and opened the door; that it is an effectual door which
no man can shut—the door of life and salvation. Hence it is our duty
to step forward and magnify the calling whereunto God has called us.
Send out the young men of Israel; send out the middle aged send out
those who have not as yet cleared their garments of the blood of this
generation to call the children of men to repentance, and to see how
many will engage with us in this great work of salvation, and become
saviors upon Mount Zion. But this preaching the Gospel to the outside
world is a small part of the work. It is but the ABC of the lesson to
be learned and the work to be accomplished. How long, I ask, shall we
be in accomplishing this work? It is not, as I have said, given to me
to know; but I can tell you in general terms. As long as there is one
soul (of all the sons and daughters of Adam that have been born on
this earth) that has not had an opportunity of receiving and obeying
the Gospel; as long as there is one soul that is in a condition to be
saved and that can be reached by this plan of salvation, so long will
the Latter-day Saints be engaged in this work. But what I was going to
bring before your minds was this: Shall we expect that the Lord Jesus
is going to delay His coming in the midst of His people, until all
this great work shall have been accomplished? By no means. I do not
understand that He has ever intheated anything of this kind. Nor need
we wait in our faith and in our expectations till all these great and
glorious things shall have been accomplished on the earth before the
Prophet Joseph Smith shall come unto us again. He  has merely taken
another mission in advance of us. He fulfilled the [p.33] mission
given unto him on earth. The Lord was satisfied with his labors here.
He lived long enough to endow his brethren with full authority to
carry on the work that he had begun on the earth. He took his
departure behind the veil. The Lord suffered his enemies to destroy
him in the flesh, to take away his life, and he was made an
offering—what shall I say? an offering for sin. Not in the sense in
which the Savior was offered, but he was made a martyr for the truth
and his blood was shed to attest the testimony that he bore to the
world. He entered upon another short mission. Where? Why, unto his
brethren of the house of Israel, and as many of the Gentiles as will
receive his testimony, behind the veil The mission of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ, between his death and resurrection was a similar
mission, but a very short one. It lasted only three days. While his
body lay in the tomb his spirit visited the spirits in prison, turned
the key and opened the door of their prison house, and offered unto
them the Gospel of salvation. How many of them were prepared to avail
themselves of it at that time? Comparatively few. But he opened the
door and offered the message of life and salvation, and having done
this, His fellow laborers—the Seventies, Elders and others whom He
ordained to the ministry—as fast as they finished their ministry in
the flesh—continued their work among' the spirits in prison. So is the
Prophet Joseph Smith officiating and ministering to those spirits, and
so are all His brethren, the Apostles, who have gone in his wake, who
have followed, as it were, in his track. They have just gone behind
the veil. Who shall we say? Let us call to mind a few of the brethren
who have passed away—Brother David Patten (the first of the Apostles
who was slain), Parley P. Pratt, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Hyde, Brigham
Young, Orson Pratt, Charles C. Rich, and others of the Apostles; also
Patriarchs Father Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith; Elders Samuel H.
Smith, Don Carlos Smith—all the first Elders of this Church and the
Presidents of all the early quorums, and a vast company of the members
of their quorums. All these and many more are laboring in the spirit
world preparing the spirits thereof to receive the benefits and
blessings which are now about to be offered to them in the temples of
God. In other words, "a ticket of leave" is about to be sent to them
to the effect that their friends on the earth have officiated in their
behalf, have complied with the ordinances which are appointed for
their redemption, which will enable them to advance into a higher
sphere, to walk upon a higher plane, to enter a higher class where
they can be further instructed and prepared for a glorious
resurrection. And as fast as this work is accomplished—and it is nigh
at hand, it is now even at our doors—there will be another step made
in advance; there will be another mission undertaken. The next mission
will be to come and prepare the way in Zion, and in her Stakes, and in
the temples of our God for turning the key of the resurrection of the
dead, to bring forth those that are asleep, and to exalt them among
the Gods. And who will be first and foremost? Why, he whom God has
chosen and placed first and foremost to hold the keys of this last
dispensation. How long will it be? It is not given tome to say the
month, the day, or the hour; but it is given unto me to say that that
time is nigh at hand. The [p.34] time is drawing near (much nearer
than scarcely any of us can now comprehend) when Joseph will be
clothed upon with immortality, when his brother Hyrum will be clothed
upon with immortality, when the martyrs will be raised from the dead,
together with their faithful brethren who have performed a good
mission in the spirit world—they, too, will be called to assist in the
work of the glorious resurrection. The Lord Jesus, who was the first
fruits of the dead, the first fruit of them that sleep, and who holds
the keys of the resurrection, will bring to pass the resurrection of
the Prophet Joseph and his brethren, and will set them to work in
bringing about the resurrection of their brethren as He has set them
to work in all the other branches of the labor from the beginning. And
the Lord Jesus will appear and show Himself unto His servants in His
temple in holy places, to counsel and instruct and direct. He will
appear in the glory of His Father, in His resurrected body, among
those who can endure His presence and glory. And all this I expect
long before He will waste away and destroy the wicked from off the
face of the earth. True, we have, in our limited understandings,
perhaps imagined, many of us, that this glorious resurrection was to
come upon us, and upon the whole world suddenly, like the rising of
the sun. But you must remember the sun does not rise the same hour and
the same moment upon all the earth. It is twenty-four hours in rising
and twenty-four hours in setting. So with the resurrection. There is a
day appointed for the resurrection of the righteous. And it is sealed
upon the heads of many that if they are faithful and true, they shall
come forth "in the morning of the first resurrection;" but the morning
lasts from the first hour of the day until mid-day, and the day lasts
till night; and the rest of the dead—those who are not prepared or
counted worthy to have part in the first resurrection—shall not live
again until the thousand years are ended. In other words, the first
resurrection will have been ended, and another period appointed for
the resurrection of the rest of the dead. But this "morning of the
first resurrection" is nigh at hand, and blessed are those who,
through their faithfulness, shall be counted worthy to have part in
it; for they shall be crowned kings and priests with God and the
Lamb—they shall reign with Christ and in the midst of His people, and
carry on the work of the redemption and resurrection of the Saints of
God. And while in some parts of the world the Elders of Israel are
preaching the Gospel unto the heathen nations who have not been
ripened for destruction, but whose kings and mighty men have perished,
and whose governments have been broken in pieces and wasted away, and
the government of the Kingdom of God has been extended over them;
while this is going on in some portions of the world, in other places,
even in Zion and in her Stakes and in Jerusalem, the children of God
will be engaged in the redemption of their dead in the temples of our
God, and in the resurrection of those that are counted worthy of so
great a salvation.

Vol. 25, p.34
Then, I say, we need not put off the day of the Lord so far from us.
Rather let us prepare ourselves for it; for lo and behold! He cometh
quickly, and blessed are they who are prepared to receive Him; for
they shall enter into His rest and  be crowned with glory, and shall
labor with Him and with the Prophet [p.35] Joseph and his brethren in
bringing to pass this great salvation and redemption of our God.

Vol. 25, p.35
May God help us to continue faithful, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Erastus Snow, October 5, 1883

Present Revelation—Work Required of the Priesthood—Improvement
Among the People—More Improvement Necessary—Faith in the Ordinances
Required—Design of God in Relation to the Children of the Saints

Delivered at the General Conference,
Friday Afternoon, October 5th, 1883.

Reported By John Irvine.

Vol. 25, p.35
I am grateful for the opportunity of meeting in Conference once more
with the Latter-day Saints, and for the health and strength given me
to continue my labors among the people, and for this same blessing of
health which is enjoyed by my brethren. I am thankful, too, that the
Lord has raised up young men to bear off the Kingdom and help carry
the burdens of the people. It is also a source of satisfaction that He
has spoken and given instructions through His servant pertaining to
the Seventies, to more fully organize and set in order the quorums of
the Priesthood, the Seventies being more especially called as
assistants to the Twelve Apostles, in the work of the ministry. And it
is desirable that the revelation upon the subject should be fully
carried out, the Priesthood in its various departments fully
organized, and every thing set in order according to the word and mind
of the Lord; that every quorum of the Priesthood, general and local,
might be in good working order. For it devolves upon the quorums of
the Melchisedek Priesthood to carry the Gospel to the nations, and to
gather those that accept it. This work is great, the field is wide,
and the word of the Lord unto us, His servants, is to thrust in our
sickles and reap, and gather the harvest of the earth. And here let me
say, the Lord has sent His angels to superintend the work. The angel
spoken of by John the Revelator, has flown with the everlasting Gospel
to preach to those that dwell upon the earth; and it is given unto us
that we should proclaim it to all nations, to every people under
heaven, the [p.36] decree having gone forth that this Gospel of the
Kingdom should be preached to all nations, and then the end should
come.

Vol. 25, p.36
Many years have elapsed since this message began to be communicated to
the sons of men; and we have become, comparatively speaking, a great
people. A little one has indeed become a thousand. We, who a few years
ago were only numbered by units and tens, now are numbered by
thousands and tens of thousands, yea hundreds of thousands. And the
Priesthood is correspondingly increasing in numbers and in ability to
labor, and acquiring means to carry on the work of preaching the
Gospel and of gathering Israel. The labor before us is not
diminishing; it is extending on every hand, and the Lord desires to
see the Elders of Israel in their various quorums and organizations
interested, earnest and alive to their calling, anxious to perform
well and faithfully the duties assigned them.

Vol. 25, p.36
The Spirit of the Lord prompts from time to time the calling and
setting apart of men to the work of the ministry, and sending them to
different portions of the globe. And inasmuch as people feel earliest
and anxious to do good, to use the means that God blesses them with in
doing good, in sending the Gospel to the nations, and in gathering the
elect of God—and as this feeling prevails and increases among the
people generally—the Seventies and Elders, when they feel this spirit
moving upon them, should not wait, supinely rest upon their oars, but
be ready to act. And here permit me to say that that feeling which has
to some extent prevailed with some in time past, that when men are
named, either in Conference, or otherwise called on missions, to
indulge in such remarks as this—"I wonder what he has been doing that
he should be sent upon a mission;"—such a spirit should not exist in
the minds of Latter-day Saints, as it is entirely foreign to those who
call men to the ministry. Such a feeling is not worthy a man called to
preach the Gospel of the Son of God. The qualifications of Elders that
are sought after, and that should recommend a minister of the Gospel,
should be an earnest; desire to do good, a willingness to serve, a
desire to know what the Lord has for him to do, and a readiness to at
once engage in the undertaking, using himself and his means, if
blessed with means, his talents or gifts bestowed upon him by the
Lord, with an eye single to His honor and glory. And men who are at
home, ought to show forth these qualities in their daily lives and
conduct, by attending their quorum meetings and their ward meetings,
and their general Priesthood meetings, and by improving every
opportunity to learn their duty, and to improve themselves in their
daily lives; by being prompt in paying their tithing and in bringing
forth their offerings for the poor, and their contributions for the
building of Temples. It may not be those who are loudest in their
professions, but those actually pursuing this course of life. These
are the men that will be useful on the earth, and whom the Lord will
delight to own and bless in their labors in the ministry. And it is
desirable, that in the various Stakes of Zion, where quorums are
organized, that the Presidents of Stakes should encourage those
quorums, and the presiding officers of the various quorums should
endeavor to gather  together all who have received the Priesthood, and
see that they are [p.37] enrolled in their respective quorums, and
encourage them to attend their quorum meetings, and there seek for the
counsels of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit that should rest upon the
presiding officers of quorums to teach the members of the quorums all
things pertaining to their duties, and how to become fitted for the
labors whereunto God has called them. For all these quorums and
organizations are so many classes for mutual improvement, edification
and instruction; and the Presidents thereof are appointed and ordained
to instruct the members of their quorums in all things in the line of
their duty. And they should be encouraged by the Presidents of Stakes
in their Quarterly Conferences to report progress and attendance of
members, and the progress they are making in their qualifications. The
Elders should thus be sought after; and according to the spirit they
manifest in attending to their duties and qualifying themselves for
the work of the ministry, they should be called into the field,
whether from the Seventies or the Elders or the High Priests, the High
Priests, however, being more especially expected to take the
responsibility of presiding in Branches, in Stakes, in Wards, as
Presidents of Stakes, as High Counselors, as Bishops, or Bishop's
Counselors, as Presiding Elders in the Conferences of the churches
abroad. And the time is not far distant when the Elders of Israel will
be required to turn their attention and labors among the branches of
the house of Israel; and especially among the remnants of Joseph, upon
this American Continent.

Vol. 25, p.37
I am pleased to be able to testify, from my travels among the people,
in attending Stake Conferences and Priesthood meetings, and hearing
their reports from time to time, that there is a steady improvement in
the feelings of the people. This was the testimony of Brother David P.
Kimball, this morning, when he said, that he could perceive a decided
improvement in the faith of the Latter-day Saints during the six years
of his absence. I think this is especially visible to all those who
are moving and acting among the people, they being the best able to
judge of their true condition. This is a source of gratitude and
thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father. I will not say of
self-congratulation; for although we have reason for thanksgiving for
the mercies and the blessings we have received, yet there are many
things still to be done, very many improvements to be made, many
weaknesses to be overcome, and very much yet to be done to instruct
the people that they may be sanctified and prepared to endure the
presence of the Lord, when he shall come; and to enable them to
withstand the shocks of the enemy, that will be directed against them.
Much remains to be done by the people in putting away evils that still
exist in our midst; and very much needs to be done in the various.
Wards and Stakes throughout all the settlements of the Saints by the
local Priesthood. I don't merely mean the Presidents of Stakes, the
Bishops, the High Counselors, and the lesser Priesthood appointed to
assist the Bishops—however important their labors may be and however
necessary it may be that they should be alive and active; but they
should also have the support of all High Priests, Seventies and Elders
in their Wards. And every officer of the Priesthood. should be alive
and awake to see what good he might do, wherever and whenever the
[p.38] opportunity exists of doing good—in his own home and family
first, watching over his own children, laboring to unite the hearts
and feelings of his wife or wives and children, that peace may dwell
in his own habitation, and the wisdom and knowledge of God grow and
increase among his own household; and to see that his children do not
grow up idlers, but are trained to be industrious, and taught to reach
out after truth, that their spirits may not be unfruitful, and that
they may be taught in the fear of the Lord, and to worship Him, and to
call upon Him, and to have faith in Him, so that when sickness assails
them that they may not first resort to the doctor, or desire to put
their trust in medical men to heal them, for the Lord has commanded
His people that when any are sick among them, they shall call for the
Elders of the Church, who shall pray over them, and lay their hands
upon them, and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord, and the
prayer of faith shall save the sick. This was the exhortation of the
Apostle James to the former-day Saints, and it has been repeated to
the Latter-day Saints. The revelations given unto us on this subject
are to the effect that "they who have faith to be healed, shall be
healed; the deaf who have faith to hear, shall hear; the lame who have
faith to walk, shall walk, etc. And they who have not faith to do
these things, but believe in me, I will have compassion upon them, and
bear their infirmities, and they shall be nursed with herbs and mild
food, and that not by the hand of an enemy."

Vol. 25, p.38
These things are for you, my brethren and sisters, and for your
families, and all who are willing to receive the word and counsels of
Almighty God. And if our faith is so weak that we have to resort to
medical aid, let us do it trusting and relying upon God, seeking unto
those who have faith, and who have confidence in God, and who do what
they do unto the Lord, righteously, justly and honorably, seeking for
the light of the Holy Ghost to help them in their profession. These
will be far more likely to succeed and do good; but the other class
are not to be relied upon, for all doctors have not faith any more
than all lawyers or other men. But the sound, intelligent philosopher
or Surgeon has respect for God and His works, which are made manifest
in all nature and in nothing more than the human frame, which is after
the image of God himself—fearfully and wonderfully made—and those who
understand it best, respect, as a rule, the Maker, and acknowledge His
wisdom as being superior to that of man, for there is nothing ever
devised by man that is equal to his own organization in perfection and
beauty, or in strength and durability.

Vol. 25, p.38
Let us remember and ponder upon these counsels, and cleave to the
Priesthood and have confidence in it; and let the Elders administer to
the sick in faith, and let them rebuke disease when the Spirit prompts
them, and it will be rebuked, and the sick will be healed by the power
of God. Every Elder in Israel should so live before the Lord as to
have confidence in Him to do this. And let the Presidents of Stakes
and the Bishops and the leading influential men encourage faith among
the people, depending upon God and the ordinances of His house rather
than trusting in man. And while  they seek for wisdom to nurse the
sick in a manner calculated to do them good, let them learn too,
[p.39] that herb medicine, unless administered in wisdom and
intelligence, is liable to injure the patient instead of benefitting
him. And let the Elders lay aside strong drinks and tobacco, and
discontinue the practice of everything having a tendency to injure the
system, and set examples before our sons and daughters that is worthy
of imitation. If parents will pursue this course they will command the
respect of their children; and when the time comes for them to go down
to their graves, their children will point to them in affection and
pride as being the chief means, under God, of their learning His ways
and walking in His paths, and of eschewing those pernicious habits
which are wasting away the life of our nation, and that are gradually
undermining society and destroying the human race. It is the design of
the Almighty to raise up in these mountains a hardy and a healthy
people, a people who shall live according to the laws of heaven that
govern them, in whom shall be found the elements of faith and power;
and it becomes our duty to shape our lives accordingly. And that God
may help us to do so, and to accomplish all that is required of us, is
my earnest desire and prayer. Amen.

Charles W. Penrose, May 20, 1883

Sincerity Alone not Sufficient—the Gathering Foretold—Inspired
Writings
not All Contained in the Bible—Province of the Holy Ghost—The
Reformers
—Confusion of Sects—Apostate Condition of the World Foretold—How the
 Apostles Were Sent Out—Authority Required—What the Saints Should Do—
Opposition to the Gospel, Ancient and Modern—Testimony

Delivered in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon,
 May 20th, 1883.

Reported By John Irvine

Vol. 25, p.39
I am called upon this afternoon quite unexpectedly to me, to address
this congregation, and I earnestly pray that the spirit of the living
God may rest down upon me and upon all who are gathered in this
Tabernacle, that I may be inspired to say something which will be
profitable to hear, and that all who listen to my words may be able to
understand them in the spirit by which they are spoken.

Vol. 25, p.40
[p.40] We have assembled here to-day to worship God our Heavenly
Father, in the name of Jesus Christ His Son, under the influence and
power of the Holy Spirit. In order that our worship may be acceptable
to God, it must be done in the name of Jesus, and it must be done
under the influence or His Spirit; for "God is a spirit, and they that
worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." We must be
sincere in our worship; we must be sincere in all that we do in order
that it may be acceptable to God. But sincerity alone is not
sufficient. We have to worship Him in truth as well as in spirit, and
we must worship Him also in the way that He has appointed, not in our
way. God does not accept the ways of man unless those ways are in
accordance with His ways. And we have come here that we may learn the
ways of God, and then walk in His path. This is in accordance with the
ancient prophets. They declared that in the last days, people should
come from all nations unto "the tops of the mountains" for this very
purpose, that they might learn of His ways and walk in His paths. The
reason why we have had to do this is because the ways of our fathers,
in their worship and in their service towards God, have been only in
accordance with their private notions, their ideas of what is right.

Vol. 25, p.40
There has been no voice from heaven heard among the children of men on
this earth for a great many centuries. People have not been guided by
the revelations of the Almighty, but by the wisdom of man, or, as we
think, the folly of faun. It is true that the people called
"Christians," have had the book called the Bible. The Old Testament
and the New Testament contain books which were written by men who
lived in ancient times, and who were inspired of God. Those books do
not contain all that was written by the servants of God, in ancient
times, but only a few of the writings given to the children of men by
inspiration. This book contains a great deal of truth and some few
errors, but the errors are the interpolations or the mistranslations
of men. The doctrines which the Bible contains are true, and they are
in sufficient plainness to be correctly understood, if the people who
read what it contains are influenced by the same spirit or inspired by
the same spirit as the men who wrote those things. But without that
spirit the people of the earth are not able fully to comprehend that
which is written. We read in that book that "the letter killeth." It
is the spirit that giveth life, and it is also the spirit that giveth
light. Without the Spirit of God as the revealing influence from on
high, mankind are unable to comprehend the things of God. As we are
unable this afternoon to see anything of a physical nature without
that natural light which comes from the sun, so without the light that
comes from the Son of Righteousness, we are unable to see the things
of God. The prophets who wrote the things contained in the Old
Testament, and the Apostles of Jesus Christ, who wrote the epistles,
and other writings contained in the New Testament, were blessed with
the gift that is called in the Scriptures the gift of the Holy Ghost.
This was not merely an influence which made them feel good; that
exalted their spiritual natures so as to make them happy, contented
and peaceful; but it was a manifestation of the power that comes from
God. As the light that comes from the sun reveals through our natural
eyes those objects which [p.41] we see around us, so the Holy Ghost
coming from God opens up and makes clear and plain the things of
eternity, those things that are called spiritual, although they are
all spiritual to our Heavenly Father. The things which we call natural
and temporal are spiritual to Him, because He sees the essence of
things, He comprehends them in their internal nature. All the elements
of all things that exist are eternal, and "the things that are
spiritual are eternal," and therefore it is all spiritual to God. We
at the present time are creatures of time, and we see things that
change. We do not comprehend their eternal nature. We do not
comprehend their essence. We only see that which is on the surface, on
the outside. But God looks into the internal nature of things as well
as of men, and comprehends them. And the elements, both of that which
is called natural and that which is spiritual, are all eternal,
without beginning and without end. They are manipulated and changed
and worked over, but they have no beginning in their essence, and they
cannot have. No atom in nature can be destroyed. It never commenced to
be; it will never cease to be. God looks upon things as they are, in
their eternal nature, and therefore they are all eternal or spiritual
to Him. But speaking after the manner of men we call things temporal
and spiritual, natural and supernatural; yet after all when we come to
comprehend them as they are, they are all material and all spiritual.

Vol. 25, p.41
The inhabitants of the earth, as I have remarked, have been without
any direct communication from God, and therefore they have been
measurably in the dark. They have been able to read some of the books
which were written by the servants of God, who were inspired by Him in
ancient times; but they have had no revelation for themselves. They
can read what Isaiah said, or Jeremiah, or Peter, or Paul, or Luke, or
other writers of the Old or New Testament; but they have had no
personal revelation. The light which they have obtained is a borrowed
light, like the light of the moon. They have been in a sort of
moonlight or twinkling star-light. There have been a great many
preachers who have claimed to be the servants of God, ministering
among the people in Christendom; some in the ancient church called the
Church of Rome, some in the Episcopal Church, some in the Methodist
Church, others in the Baptist Church, and so on through all the
various denominations that compose modern Christendom. No doubt many
of them were good men, men who strove to the best of their ability,
and the best of their knowledge to enlighten the minds of their
fellow-men. Some of them, perhaps, were mere hirelings, "preaching for
hire and divining for money;" but others were sincere in their hearts,
sincere in their worship, sincere in the religion which they taught to
others. But they had not a knowledge of the truth. They had a faith of
some kind. They believed in certain principles. They believed in the
things which they read in the Bible so far as they could comprehend
them, but they had no positive knowledge in regard to the things which
they believed in and which they taught. The men who were called the
Reformers, who came out from the Church of Rome, and introduced a
little more truth than the people previously had, and reformed several
errors that were existing—were, some of them, most excellent men, and
they performed [p.42] a great and a good work in the earth. But they
were not called of God in the way that His servants were called in
anci