Journal of Discourses
OBEDIENCE--THE PRIESTHOOD--SPIRITUAL COMMUNICATION--THE SAINTS AND THE WORLD.
An Address by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, September 17, 1854.
It is some time since I spoke to this congregation, and it is with me as it probably is with many others, the longer I sit, and the less I say, the more I am troubled with fear. Is it the fear of God? No. It is a kind of a fear of the world--a fear of man. Now there is scarcely a person but what has more or less of these feelings, at times. I recollect often hearing brother Joseph Smith say that many times his legs trembled like Belshazzar's when he got up to speak before the world, and before the Saints.
I have been interested with the relation brother Staines has given, although he could not relate all the experience he has had since he came into this Church some twelve or fourteen years ago. If he could remember it all, and relate it, his experience would be very interesting. It is good, and I have been interested with it. I am interested with everything that is good; and in fact, I am interested with a great many things which are not so very good, for there is nothing that I see on earth or in the heavens but what interests me, and gives me an experience. When I see a man take the wrong road--the road which leads to death, it is an experience to me, and it opens my eyes to shun that path. And we are taught that if a man will not learn by precept, or by example, he has to learn by what he suffers. By seeing the bad example of another I can shun that path, and escape the difficulties he goes into. Of course his experience is quite a schoolmaster to me; for if I do not take that road, I do not suffer the inconvenience he does.
During my whole course from the day I first heard of "Mormonism," more than twenty-two years ago, I have never had but one desire, and that is to do what I am counselled, it matters not to me whether it be by the voice of God, or by the voice of His servants, it is all the same with me. When we go forth as the servants of God, we are dictated by the Holy Ghost, and the Holy Ghost will speak the truth, and that is the word of God, it is the revelations of Jesus Christ, and it is the voice of God to us.
When He commands us to go forth and preach His word, and declare His Gospel--faith, and repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, with the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. He says it is the same as though it were spoken by His own voice, and the same condemnation will rest upon the world, and upon those people who hear it and do not abide it, and keep it, and walk in it. This is my testimony, and this is the testimony that God has revealed to us as a people. When he sent forth his disciples in his day he said, If they will not hear you they will not hear me; and if they will not obey you they will not obey me, and if they will not obey me they will not obey my Father. So it is with us, if you will not listen, obey, and practise those things that are laid before you by President Young and his brethren, you would not obey God, if He should speak from the heavens. Why? Because the Almighty has appointed him his delegate, just as much as we have appointed Doctor Bernhisel to be our Delegate to Congress, to lay before them those things that we want in connexion with him. He has not gone to do his own will, but he has gone to do the will of those who have sent him. So it is with President Young. He is our head, he is our President, our Prophet, and Leader, and the Government of the United States have appointed him our Governor. He was before, in a Church capacity. Then his voice to this people is the voice of God, just as much as was Moses God, when God called him and set him to preside among the children of Israel. His word was the word of God to that people, and when they did not listen to him they suffered the penalty. We read there were two-and-twenty thousand fell in one day because of their rebellion. They rebelled against Moses, against his counsel, and against his government, which was of course rebelling against the character who sent him. God sent him and authorized him; and to us President Young is sent, ordained, and appointed by the Almighty, as Joseph's successor, to lead this people. I want the world to know this; I want the people who come into these valleys, and do not believe "Mormonism," to know what we believe. Probably there are but few men in the United States but what know that we look up to President Brigham Young as our leader, Prophet, and dictator. I want you to understand that I actually do, and I believe I have done so to the entire satisfaction of this people. I have proved it by my works from the day I came into the Church until the present time.
Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, and was sent of God. He had visits from holy angels from the heavens, who authorized him to commit to this nation the Gospel, the plan of salvation and eternal life, which will save every man and woman that believe it, and practise it in their lives--in their out-goings, and in their in-comings. I know it will save them. You have my testimony, and my testimony is true, and you will find it so, every soul of you who will practise it.
We believe this book, the Bible, to be an historical account of Jesus Christ, and his Apostles and Prophets. We believe it is sacred, and the great majority of this people actually practise it; and there is not a man nor woman in this Church, who believe it, but what have been baptized for the remission of their sins, and that too by immersion, being buried with Christ by baptism. This is what they have done, and that enables them, after they have received the laying on of hands, to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and they are entitled to a membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If they honor that membership, and are faithful, they will continue in it, not in time only, but in eternity, worlds without end. These are my feelings, and my determination is to continue to the end.
I am now in my fifty-fourth year; I am a Latter-day Saint, full in the faith, and not only in the faith, but I have a <knowledge> of the truth of the work. I know that God lives and dwells in the heavens; for I have asked Him scores of times, and hundreds of times, for things, and have received them. Is not that a pretty good proof that He hears me, when I ask Him for things and get them; and is not that a proof that He lives, and dwells in the heavens? I think it is. I suppose He dwells there, He could not dwell anywhere else, but in what particular portion He dwells, I do not precisely know, though He is not so far off as many imagine. He is near by, His angels are our associates, they are with us and round about us, and watch over us, and take care of us, and lead us, and guide us, and administer to our wants in their ministry and in their holy calling unto which they are appointed. We are told in the Bible that angels are ministering spirits to minister to those who shall become heirs of salvation.
Bless my soul, look at the unbelieving world, that is a great many of them, they now believe in spiritual knockings, spiritual communications, and spiritual rappings, and they will ask the same spirit for this, and for that; to know this, that, and the other; and, "Won't you cause that table to kick up its legs, and that chair to dance, and cause a knocking here, and a knocking there?" They believe all this, still they do not believe that God can communicate. And at the same time those that they communicate with are corrupt spirits, and they might know it, and still they say they can speak from the heavens, and communicate this, that, and the other, and tell them where their friends are. If wicked spirits can do this, I want to know, on the same principle, if the righteous have not power to communicate to the children of men? And has not God power to do it? He has. The whole world is now enthusiastic in these things.
I never heard a knocking, or saw a table dance, only as I kicked it myself. I do not want them knocking and dancing around me.
The people of the world do not believe in revelation from God, and they believe that Joseph Smith was a fool to pretend to have revelation direct from heaven, but still they are all engaged in this matter, in getting revelations from evil, corrupt, and comparatively ignorant spirits, and wicked men. Some became spiritual writers by a spirit taking their hand, and writing without their consent. I do not thank any person to take my hand and write without my consent; we do not like such proceedings. We believe they exist, but they are not for us. We receive communications upon another principle, and that is direct from heaven, from God's servants, delegates, or administrators; this is what we believe most devoutly; and we intend to practise our religion, and to be governed by it.
I have no doubt but the gentlemen who have come in this year will discover a difference in the manners and conduct of the people here, when compared with those of the cities from whence we have come. We do not admit of some practices in our city that they admit of in the United States, at least in all of their great cities. We desire to live a <virtuous> and holy life, and do unto others as we wish others to do unto us, and for that reason many of us have been driven from the United States; I say many of us, for a great many who are now here have not been driven here, but have come since we were driven, and we have passed through a great many trials. Brother Staines was speaking about some of them. I was one of the first, in connexion with President Young, who came to this valley when it was a desolate region, and we could not even get a chart from Fremont, nor from any other man, from which to learn the course to this place. I was one who helped to pick out the road. When we started to come here, we had no more provisions with us than those emigrants started with, to whom we have sent flour this season. We had only one hundred-weight a-piece, and came here with nothing but what was in our wagons, only as we hunted and killed game. When we got to the upper ferry of Platte river, half of our company had not a mouthful of bread. That would look a little harder to you than the cricket time, still there was no grunting, nor murmuring, for it was beyond the grunting point; it would not do any good to find fault; it would not provide bread, buffalo, antelope, deer, nor elk.
I recollect one day, I believe it was on the Platte, brother Brigham said to me, "Brother Heber, what do you think about it, do you think we shall go any further?" I knew he asked this question to try me. I replied, I wanted to go the whole journey, and find some white sandstone, and see what there was in the earth. There never was a day when I would not go with him until we found a location. I knew there was a place somewhere, thought [sic] at times the prospect appeared dreary, but here it was on high. It is the best country I ever saw. I have lived in the best portions of the United States, but this country is better. I have lived where Joseph found the plates, and where the angel of the Lord administered to him; it is the heart of the world, but is that place as good as this? No. It does not begin to bring forth wheat, corn, oats, and every other vegetation that the heart desires, like this land. We are going to be comfortable here.
The troops of the United States have come here; see how liberal they have offered for wheat, and not only for wheat, but for oats, barley, corn, potatoes, cheese, chickens, beets, carrots, parsnips, and everything they wish to buy. We do not say so much about the merchants, they have got plenty. You will see how good we will make the transient residents feel this winter.
How comfortable they feel, and rejoice to dwell in the midst of white people. They never thought for a moment we were <white> men and women; but when they came, they found out, to their astonishment, that the people in Utah were quite white, and right from their own country. Bless your souls, we are a free people, it is not a slave country here; still I admit we have to slave pretty hard to raise these fine things. Well now, do not be disheartened; make yourselves comfortable; treat us well, and you shall be treated well, and the best you ever were in your lives; but HANDS OFF. I speak just as I feel. My heart is good, kind, and generous; but there are lots of men more generous than I am, and again there are lots that are not so much so. All kinds of spirits have all kinds of capacities. There are as many spirits here as you can see persons, for they all have spirits in them; and some are more snappish than others, and some are more liberal, kind, and generous, and more divested of selfishness than others. If that is a fact, it proves to me that you can become just as generous as the most generous. Let us try, and what I say to one Saint I say to all the Saints, and to all people that come into this valley, be generous, be friendly, and be Saints.
We want you to be Saints while you stay here; for you know in the days of the Apostles, when they were among the Romans they did as Romans did; and while you are among the "Mormons," do as the "Mormons" do; be generous, and be <white> folks. We are white folks; a good portion of us were born in the United States, and a great many in Old England; and they are our brethren and sisters. My father came from there, and fought for this country, and sustained it; if he did not my grandfather did, it is along in that train some where. We have all come from the old countries, and come into a new country, into the States; and from that we have emigrated into still newer countries--into the tops of the mountains, just as the Prophet said. They declared the Saints would be gathered in the last days, and we are gathering to build a city to the name of our God, and we are going to build a Temple, and houses of worship, that when you come here you may worship with us, and when you are among the "Mormons" do as the "Mormons" do, do right, and keep the commandments of God. I have said a good many times, when a man comes into my house, if he is a Catholic, a Pagan, a Quaker, a Baptist, a Methodist, a Soldier, a Captain, a Governor, or a President, he has got to subject himself to the order of my house; and when I bow down on my knees, I want him to bow down with me. That is my religion, let him bow down and pray with me; and then if I go into another man's house, if he stands up to pray, I will stand up too and pray with him. That is good religion. Do as the Romans do when you are among them. A man can stand up, kneel down, or sit down, and not pray, and be as cross as he has a mind too, but let him be subject to the governor or the government of that house, and when he goes into another kingdom, let him be subject to that kingdom. God says, "If a man keep my commandments he has no need to break the laws of the land!" These are my feelings.
Let us be Saints, and keep the commandments of God, and mind our own business. That is my religion. We want all men to do this, we want all women to observe the same thing--to keep the commandments of God, and keep themselves pure and clean. And if you are not clean, pure, and holy, I would advise you to repent of your sins, and go and be baptized for the remission of them, and sanctify yourselves, and receive the Holy Ghost, that it may show you things to come, and bring things to your remembrance. That is my counsel and advice.
May God bless you, brethren and sisters, and bless this whole people, male and female, old and young, foreigner and every body else; may He bless you with peace and quietness, that we may have a heavenly time, a joyful time during the coming winter. May God bless you with these blessings, and every other, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE FIRST PRINCIPLES OF THE GOSPEL.
A Discourse by President J. M. Grant, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 17, 1854.
I will call your attention this morning while I read to you that scripture recorded in the Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Galatians, 1st. chap.
[President Grant read the whole chapter.]
Not long ago, our President was saying that he would like it, if the Elders would preach the Gospel. Considering myself an Elder, and years ago having had some experience in preaching the first principles of the Gospel to the world, I thought this morning I would endeavor, by the aid of your prayers, and by the aid of the Spirit of the Lord, to preach what I consider the Gospel.
In the chapter I have read there is a favorite text, that I used to select when I was travelling abroad to preach, particularly when I chanced to get among those who supposed the Latter-day Saints, or "Mormons," had a new Bible, and preached a new Gospel. I used to select the eighth verse of the chapter I have just read, which reads as follows--"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed."
All who understand the language of this passage, will agree that the Apostle alluded particularly to the Gospel that he had preached to the Galatians and others, and that which was preached by his colleagues, the other Apostles, and by others who were authorized to preach.
It would be useless for a man to embrace our religion unless he could be satisfied that the first principles thereof are based upon the word of God contained in the holy Scriptures. In relation to our faith, I would say, the Gospel as preached by the Apostles, and as contained in the book of Mormon, is the same, or agrees with the Gospel contained in the Bible. The Gospel preached by Joseph Smith, and the revelations of God that have come through him to the Church, as contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, fully agree with the Gospel contained in the New Testament.
The commission given to Joseph Smith and others in our day, was to go forth and preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Lord said unto them, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned." The Savior gave the same commission to the Twelve Apostles anciently, and said, "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." But he enjoined another duty upon them, he commanded them to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endowed with power from on high.
In the chapter I have read, you will notice the Apostle Paul states he did not receive this Gospel of man, neither was he taught it but by the revelations of Jesus Christ. From this you see, that the Gospel was a certain something he could not receive from man, but had to receive it from Jesus Christ by revelation. The disciples had travelled with Jesus, they had seen him in the midst of his enemies, and witnessed that he had been delivered by the power of God from their grasp; they had seen him cast out devils; they had heard his voice speak to the dead, and they came forth; thus, they had witnessed many mighty displays of the power of God through His Son Jesus Christ; yet, said he, "Before you attempt to preach my Gospel to all the world, after I leave you and go to the Father, tarry in Jerusalem until you are endowed with power from on high." They had learned obedience to his word, and according to the account given of them they tarried.
The nature of that endowment was different from the one we read of in these days, viz., to go to college, or other seminary of learning, and graduate, to be endowed and qualified to preach the Gospel. The nature of the endowment given to the Apostles anciently was of a peculiar kind. They tarried till the Jews assembled to celebrate the feast of Pentecost.
At that feast were assembled the leaders of the Jews, and thousands flocked to the city of Jerusalem not only from the Jewish nation, but from the neighboring nations. They waited until the day of Pentecost was fully come, and while they were assembled together in an upper room, "suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."
"When this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded because every man heard them speak in his own language." "They were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born." "Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said to them, Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: for these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel," &c. Thus, while they were wondering and disputing among themselves, the chief Apostle Peter, who had received the keys of the kingdom from his Master, with his brethren, stepped forward and commenced preaching to them, and gave them a narrative of the dealings of God with their fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; noticing the promises made to them, and tracing the subject down through the Prophets to the people then living.
He told them they had crucified the Lord of glory, that he had risen from the dead, and being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, had shed forth that which they saw and heard. "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their hearts, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the Apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?" The Apostle Peter having sojourned with the Savior, and witnessed his miracles, if you please had been with him on the Mount when he was glorified, and being endowed with the Holy Ghost, the presumption with me is that he actually was qualified to preach the Gospel as it should be preached. If we ascertain the Gospel that Peter preached, the Gospel that John and James preached, the Gospel that the Apostle Paul preached, we shall ascertain that Gospel, that if any man of an angel from heaven preach any other the curses of God shall rest upon him. "And they said unto Peter and the rest of the Apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?" "Then said Peter unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call."
In order that you may draw the line of demarkation between the Gospel preached by Peter on that important day, and the Gospel now preached in Christendom, I need only call upon you to reflect upon your own experience, to reflect upon what has been taught you when you have anxiously inquired what you should do to be saved. How often have you heard the sound from the pulpit saying, "Come forth to the anxious bench, to the prayer ring, and we will unite and pray for you, and you shall be converted;" and sometimes a portion of the congregation is sent to a private house to pray for you, while the preacher is operating upon you in public. Again, others that have been taken from the congregation are waiting at a private house for the priest to operate upon them there, while the congregation remain to pray for them in the chapel.
This is practised extensively among the divines of the present day. You will find the preachers teaching hell and damnation, and in various ways seeking to terrify their hearers, by portraying before them the agonies of the damned, and the miseries to be endured by the unconverted in the hot lava of hell--the awful condition of the damned souls that are cast out into the dark regions of hades; and then they are praying and working with all their might to convert souls, and turn them to the Lord. I have heard so much of this that I can fairly taste it yet.
Now I ask you did the Apostle Peter teach any thing of this kind--did he teach the people that they should come forth and be prayed for, that they might be converted and get the remission of their sins? No: but in the first place he bore testimony to them, he taught them that Jesus Christ had been crucified, and was risen from the dead, and that Jesus Christ is the only name given unto men, by which they can be saved; that their fathers had persecuted the Prophets, and shed the blood of the Son of God, and when they anxiously exclaimed, "Men and Brethren, what shall we do?" says Peter, "Repent," &c.
Now upon the subject of repentance; I have been told in my boyhood that it is a sorrow for sin. There are two kinds of sorrow spoken of in Scripture: Paul says godly sorrow worketh repentance that needeth not to be repented of, but says he, "The sorrow of the world worketh death." The sorrow of the world is of this nature; for instance, we find men who curse and swear, lie and steal, get drunk, &c., when they are reproved, or even when they reflect in their reflective moments, they are sorry for their conduct, but does that prove they repent? Certainly not, a man may be sorry for sin and not repent thereof. You may see the drunkard at his home intoxicated, abusing his wife and children, but when he is sober he is sorry for the act, and perhaps the next day is found drunk again, he still continues to pour down the intoxicating fire-water, and is sorry again, does he repent? No; but he is sorry with the sorrow of the world, which worketh death, which is to sin, and be sorry for it, and go and sin again; but godly sorrow worketh repentance that needeth not to be repented of. What kind of sorrow do we understand Peter to mean when he said to the Jews, "Repent." We understand him to mean, they were to <forsake> their sins; to cease to do evil; let him that stole, steal no more; let him that got drunk, cease the sinful practice; let him who has been in the habit of doing wrong in any way, cease to do wrong, and learn to do right.
I am here reminded of a circumstance that took place in Virginia. A deist, a lawyer by profession, was on his death bed through consumption; his friends were Presbyterians, and they had prayed for him again and again, and the poor fellow still remained unconverted, and of course was expected to go into eternity, to dwell in that hot place. The last resort was to have a minister to pray for him, but he still remained unconverted. They exhorted him to repent and turn to God, and be converted before the brittle thread of life should be snapped asunder, and he should take his exit to another world. He thanked them for their advice, and told them he appreciated their labors. After they had got through exhorting him, he being wearied, and very sick, they concluded to let him rest, and converse among themselves on the topics of religion. They began to converse about the conscience being the most troublesome thing in the world. Said one, "I am much afflicted with the smitings of conscience when I lie down and rise up." "And so am I," said another, "that monitor within is more trouble to me than anything else here below." When they had got through, the deist spoke and said, "Gentlemen, you have taken the trouble to come and give me advice, now permit me to give you a little; go home all of you, forsake your sins and behave yourselves, and your consciences will not trouble you any more." It is true repentance, when a man departs from evil, and cleaves to that which is good. This is what the Apostle means when he said to the inquiring Jews on the day of Pentecost, "Repent, and be baptized." "What shall we be baptized for, Peter?" "For the remission of your sins."
In the first place, you notice, he taught them the Gospel, and faith sprung up in them by hearing the word of God--the Apostles, filled with the Holy Ghost, preached the word of God, and the multitude believed. As soon as they had faith, they were taught to repent; then repentance is the second step to be taken by the sinner in the Gospel of salvation. As soon as they were taught to repent, they were commanded to be baptized for the remission of sins. Some preach the ordinance of baptism very lightly, they say that baptism is an outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace. I want to reason on that a few minutes, taking them upon their own grounds.
According to their own admonition, "the faith" means the orthodox clergy. You know every man considers his religion orthodox, and his neighbor's religion heterodox. The orthodox clergy of the day, who are defenders of "<the faith>," say that baptism is an outward sign of an inward work. Suppose it is. Suppose I take this woman's child and sprinkle a little water on its head, that is an acknowledgement or sign of a corresponding inward work. How much inward work has a sprinkled person got? Just a little sprinkling, that is all, if baptism is a sign of the work within.
Now if baptism is an outward sign of an inward work, and you cover a person in water, that is a sign that the entire man had to be filled with the Holy Ghost. They reason rightly in relation to their case, and I presume indeed their mode of baptism is a corresponding sign of the work within; and immersion must certainly be a very strong sign corresponding with an extensive inward work, according to their own reasonings.
But baptism is for the remission of sins. "What!" says one, "baptism is a saving ordinance!" Certainly it is saving in its nature, in connexion with the balance of the Gospel of salvation. The people are to be saved if they embrace the Gospel, and to be damned if they do not. If I escape damnation by obedience to the Gospel, and baptism is a part of it, I would ask if that is not a portion of the scheme by which I escape--a part of the scheme by which I am saved? It is certainly so.
When the angel appeared to Cornelius he did not baptize him, but said he, "Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God. And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter: he lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the seaside: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do." Cornelius obeyed; and when Peter came and learned his situation, and the vision he had had of an angel, he taught him the Gospel, and commanded him to be baptized. Peter told him words whereby he should be saved, and these were a part of them.
It was also said to the Apostle Paul, by the servant of the Lord, "Why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins," &c. That was the way the Almighty had instituted in the Gospel; baptism is an institution of heaven, sanctioned by the Father, revealed by the Son, taught by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; and is the method by which a man's sins can be remitted. Faith, repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins were a saving means to the children of men anciently, and are at the present day, because they are a part of the Gospel, and are all essential to the remission of sins.
In relation to the mode of baptism, there is sufficient in the Bible to prove that. The Apostle in writing to his brethren tells them he was buried with Christ in baptism; and Jesus commanded his disciples to follow him. If they were buried with Christ, it shows that he was buried. I ask if you can go and be buried with any of your friends unless they be buried also? But the world are not pleased with this mode of remitting sins; they say it is too easy. They make me think of Naaman the Assyrian, when he came to the old Prophet Elisha; he came with his gold and his silver, with his chariots and servants, expecting to be healed of his leprosy by means of some great thing. He expected by his talents of silver and gold to win the Prophet over to heal him. Elisha did not even go out to see him, but sent his servant with a message saying, Go and wash seven times in Jordan, and be healed. But the old Assyrian was wrath and went away, and said, "Behold, I thought, he will surely come out to me, and stand, and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand upon the place, and recover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? May I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage." One of his servants stepped up, and said, "My father, if the Prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? How much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
It is not that baptism is such a great thing, or that it can be purchased with silver and gold, that it washes away sins, but because the Almighty has instituted it as His own ordinance; and if you will comply therewith, He promises you a remission of sins. If you are buried with Christ in baptism it proves he was buried.
I once asked a Methodist if he considered Jesus Christ the Lamb of God. He said he did. I then asked him if he believed that the Colossians were buried with Christ in baptism, "Yes, but," said he, "Dr. Clark says, when commenting upon that passage, that immersion was administered only to adult believers. We believe they were actually immersed." Said I, "Do you think Jesus Christ was immersed?" "No, we think he was either poured or sprinkled." I then inquired of him how they could be buried with Christ unless he was buried also. He said, he did not know about that; but he thought it was very probable that Christ was sprinkled. I asked him if he considered the head of a man all the man, or if the shoulders and the arms were all the man. "No," he answered. "Well, then," said I, "if you consider the head, arms, shoulders, body, legs, and feet all the man, and the whole man baptized, you must believe he was immersed to accomplish his baptism." "If the Colossians were buried <with Christ> in baptism, he also must have been buried."
Among other arguments against the immersion of the whole body as the mode of baptism, he said that delicate women would catch cold if they were buried in water. I contended, if it would not hurt the Lamb of God to be baptized it would not hurt a sheep. Then baptism by immersion is the third principle in the Gospel of salvation; and the Apostle taught the people if they would be baptized they should receive the remission of sins, and receive the Holy Ghost; for, said he, "The promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even to as many as the Lord our God shall call."
Notice here the extensive promise of Peter, that the Holy Ghost should come upon every man who would yield obedience to the Gospel. In process of time, as they preached in the regions round about Jerusalem, Philip went to Samaria, and preached to the people of that city; they gave heed to his preaching, and they were baptized, both men and women. It does not read men, women, and children, but Philip went to Samaria, and preached the Gospel, and they were baptized, both men and women; infants are not mentioned; and they had great joy in that city. Says one, "Yes, they had joy because they had received the gift of the Holy Ghost;" but wait; when they at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word, they sent Peter and John to pray for them at Samaria, and lay their hands on them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost, for as yet it had fallen on none of them; hence you perceive they had great joy, but not the Holy Ghost. But when the Apostles prayed for the Samaritans who had received the word, and laid their hands upon them, they received the Holy Ghost.
Now suppose we should say that the curse of the Apostle Paul would rest upon every person that did not preach the same Gospel that he and his brethren preached and practised, we should only be saying what is emphatically declared in the Scriptures.
The Holy Ghost was received by the laying on of hands. Was this ever taught you in England, or in America, except by the Latter-day Saints? Did you hear this at any protracted meeting of Presbyterians, or at any meeting of the members of the Church of England? Would you hear this Gospel in a Methodist Chapel, or on their camp grounds, to repent and be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands? If you would, you would hear something I never heard. Well, though we or an angel from heaven preach any other Gospel, let him be accursed. No matter how near men may preach the Gospel; they must preach the same Gospel, every part of it, every ordinance of it, every principle Jesus Christ revealed and his Apostles taught, if they do not, they teach another Gospel, and if they teach another, says the Apostle, let them be accursed.
Now if you will preach the same Gospel, you will preach the same principles precisely that were taught not only by Paul, Peter, James, and John, but by all the rest of their fellow servants. And when men received the Holy Ghost, they spake with other tongues, and prophesied. In order to tell whether people have embraced the true Gospel or not, we need only to look at their fruits, for by their fruits shall ye know them, says the Savior. Look, for instance, at the Corinthian Church; though you read they were guilty of many absurdities, yet to one was given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same spirit; to another faith by the same spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues. All these gifts, which are reckoned up and classified by the Apostle Paul, were enjoyed by the Corinthians.
Now some suppose there was a necessity for this display of the power of God to establish the Gospel, and that when it was established the gifts would be done away. I recollect reading, in the ninety-fourth sermon of John Wesley, in commenting upon this subject, he says, "It has been vulgarly supposed that after the Gospel was established the spiritual gifts were no longer needed; but this is a gross error. To be sure we seldom hear of them after that fatal period that Constantine called himself a Christian. Scarcely an instance of the manifestation of these spiritual gifts can be found in the second century, the reason is not that they were done away by the will of the Almighty, but Christians had apostatized, and become heathen, and had nothing but a dead form of religion left, and this is the grand reason the gifts have not continued in the Church." This is the idea Wesley gives in the sermon I have alluded to, if not the exact language. That is "Mormonism." In the second century the Church apostatized and became heathen, and men could not speak by the gift of the Holy Ghost, and with other tongues, and prophesy, and obtain visions, and the gift of healing. The Apostle says, If there be any sick among you let him send for the Elders of the Church and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, &c.
But in the present day it is, "If any be sick among you let him send for a physician, or a noted practitioner in the healing art; and let him go forth and administer a portion of calomel mixed with gamboge, with the addition of a large blister plaster upon the back of the neck, and you shall be healed." We do not learn this from the teachings of Jesus Christ, Peter, James, Paul, or any of the Apostles; it is not incorporated in the Gospel; but the Gospel plan of administering to the sick is, if any be sick among you, let him call for the Elders of the Church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he hath committed sins they shall be forgiven him. Jesus Christ says, when speaking of the power that shall attend his servants, "They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover; " and, says the Apostle Paul, Stir up the gift of God that is given thee by the laying on of my hands. It is said that Joshua was full of the Holy Ghost after Moses had laid his hands on him. Members of the Church of England when they are sick send for a noted physician, and they trust in a doctor for their recovery, not in the Lord or in the virtue of their religion. They dare not, many of them, live in the city without a family physician; they must have a family physician and an eminent physician, and in case the family physician fails to prescribe an effectual remedy they must send for the eminent physician. This is the case with orthodox professors throughout the world.
Do they preach the Gospel as they did in ancient days? Do they teach the people to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins? If the laying on of hands and the anointing with oil healed the sick then, why not now? If the Gospel is the same, if God is the same, if the Holy Ghost is the same, if faith is the same, if baptism is the same, and if all the principles of the Gospel are the same, will they not produce the same effect?
I want to bear my testimony, that mine eyes have seen the sick healed in the way the Gospel recommends; I have seen the ears of the deaf opened, and they have heard; I have seen the lame man walk, and leap like a hart; and I have seen others rise up suddenly from their sick bed, healed of a consuming fever.
In Montrose, near Nauvoo, hundreds of families were sick nigh unto death, and some were given up to die. The Prophet Joseph Smith took some of the Elders with him, and went over there, and said to the sick, "I command you, in the name of the Lord God, to rise up and walk." And he went from house to house, and made every man, woman, and child to walk, and they followed him to the next sick family, and they are witnesses here to testify to it. There are men now upon the face of the earth, that by the visions of the Almighty have seen convoy after convoy of angels. Can you find these things out of the Latter-day Church? No; you cannot. Are the sick healed in this city? Yes; I know they are. I have administered to the sick, in company with my brethren, and they were healed, and I know they were healed by the power of God; those that die are killed by the doctors. I tell you their calomel mixed with gamboge, their shaving of the head, and their blistering operations, kill ten where they heal one.
The Gospel preached by Joseph Smith is the same that is contained in the New Testament, and which was preached by Jesus Christ and his Apostles, and it is the power of God to every one that believes it; it will heal the sick, open the heavens, and revolutionize the earth; and this Gospel must be preached to all nations for a witness to them. I bear testimony to all men that Joseph Smith preached it in its purity and fulness, as the Apostles of old preached it; and that it is now being preached in the United States, in Europe, in the Islands of the sea, and will be preached in every nation, kindred, tongue, and people under the whole heavens; and the same fruits, the same blessings, the same light and glory will be manifested as anciently.
May God save us all in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
An Address by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Dec. 17, 1854.
The Gospel you have heard this morning from brother Grant, you have heard over and over again. Every one who professes to be a Latter-day Saint, and will acknowledge the truth of this Gospel according to the historical account in the New Testament, must know that it is true. Why? Because, as brother Grant has testified, when brother Joseph Smith proclaimed this Gospel of repentance and baptism for the remission of sins, his testimony would have been true if there had been no New Testament.
God sent an angel to him and others, and the angel preached the Gospel to them, and authorized Joseph Smith to baptize Oliver Cowdery, and then Joseph received baptism from his hands. When Jesus Christ came he authorized men to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, and then he went forward and was baptized himself; he did not excuse himself, neither did brother Joseph. He went forward and set the example, that he might fulfil all righteousness, that he might glorify God on earth and in heaven; and, said he, "That I have seen my Father do, that do I." Upon the same principle, you pursue the course you see the Apostles in the last days pursue.
As to the circumstance brother Grant was speaking of in Montrose, I was with brother Joseph, and so was brother Brigham and many others, and hundreds were healed, and leaped out of their beds, and followed us. If you do not believe it, call on many of those that were sick nigh unto death at that time, and are now living in these valleys, enjoying good health. How many sick have been healed in old England? I have been many a time in houses where people were sick nigh unto death, with small-pox, and with other complaints, and they were healed by the power of God; I have taken them to the water, when they have been on the verge of the grave, and baptized them, and they have been healed. "What, of the small-pox?" Yes; and there are numbers of people here that were sick nigh unto death, and brother Orson Hyde is a witness that they were just ready to die, and they are now here in a robust state of health. [Orson Hyde, "It is true."] True? Yes, as true as that God reigns in the heavens; and there are thousands more in the Church who know it is true. The testimony of brother Grant and other men is just as true, and will be valid just as much as the testimony of Peter, James, and John, for they speak the truth as it is in Jesus Christ.
I rejoice that I live in this day. You have heard me say a great many times that "Mormonism" and this people are the pride of my heart. I wish to see the Saints do right, and repent of their sins in such a manner, that they never need to have any more repentance from this time, and forsake their sins, and do their first works, and turn unto the Lord with full purpose of heart while it is their privilege, and then it will not be required for a man to preach to this people the first principles of the Gospel of Christ; for there are many who ought to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins; but never go into the water again and be baptized for the remission of your sins, except you forsake them, and be Saints from that time forth, and not cultivate the principle of iniquity with yourselves, nor with your families, nor among this people. Let every man and woman rise up and purge iniquity from our midst, and if you do not, all I can say is, you will see sorrow, and you will see sorrow that will cleave to you, though you repent in tears, and in sack-cloth and ashes, and you cannot get out of it until the Lord has a mind to deliver you.
Brethren and sisters, treasure up the Gospel, read the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, and the Book of Mormon. What does the Lord say? That every one, who will read the Book of Mormon attentively, faithfully, and prayerfully, before he gets through, will receive a testimony of its truth. I know it. If you have lost the Spirit, go and read the Book of Mormon, and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and you will get it again, more or less. There are but few who know anything about these books and what they mean.
I wanted to bear testimony, in connexion with brother Grant, of the truth of his statements with regard to the healing power of God manifested in Montrose, for I went with the Prophet, and am an eye-witness. Has not this Gospel the same power it had eighteen hundred years ago? It has, for God has renewed it unto us, and conveyed it to us through Joseph Smith, by the ministration of an angel. We have received the Gospel, and we have received the Priesthood, and the keys and power pertaining thereto, and the Kingdom of God is restored, and it will never be overthrown again, but will overthrow all iniquity or power that undertakes to wrestle with it, I care not whether it is a nation or a kingdom. Do the world believe this? Who cares whether they do or not, God knows it will do it, and I know it, and that is enough. If there was not another man in heaven or on earth knew it, and I knew it, and was authorized, it would overthrow all other governments, and they could not help themselves. You all know this, don't you brethren? ["Yes."]
Let us be brethren. As I have often said, I want to see this people acting like brethren; and if any of you have got full lots in the city, let your mother or your sister have a portion; and if you have got more land than you can cultivate, do likewise; and if Weber County has got more than they need, let Davies have a piece, and let us be one. Let us be brethren, and let us be one, and then what will the world be to us? I wish you all felt as I do, and then you would know that God will not suffer His righteous servants to be overthrown; and you must never undertake to overthrow them, if you calculate to be Priests of our God, and reign for ever.
Millions of men will be saved who will never be Gods. They may be the Saints of God, and be submissive to the sons of God. Listen to the counsel of the servants of God, and do as our head tells us to do, and we will prosper from this time henceforth and for ever.
I know what will save you, it does not require much knowledge to tell that, for it consists in keeping the commandments of God, and that alone will save you. May God bless you, and help you to live faithfully before Him from this time henceforth and for ever. Amen.
THE INCREASED POWERS AND FACULTIES OF THE MIND IN A FUTURE STATE.
A Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, October 15, 1854.
I feel grateful to my heavenly Father this afternoon for the privilege of meeting with the Saints in this Tabernacle; and feel thankful also for the privilege of rising in this stand, for the purpose of speaking to you upon such subjects as may be presented to my mind.
I, however, realize sometimes, more than at others, the necessity of having the gift of the Holy Spirit resting upon me in order to instruct and teach the people; for that is the only object of speaking and hearing in a place like this. We speak for the purpose of conveying to others the ideas that are contained within our own minds; or such ideas as God may condescend to put into our hearts; the people listen for the purpose of receiving the ideas that may be advanced, in hope that their minds will be enlarged and instructed, through the speaker. If I know my own heart, it is my desire when I rise before an assembly to communicate something that shall be instructing to the minds of the people; and in order to do this, I am perhaps as well aware as any other person living, of the necessity of having that Spirit that is able to give truth to the mind--that Spirit that is able to inspire the heart in the very moment with the words and ideas calculated to benefit the people. Indeed this is the promise of the Lord to His servants; they are not to take any thought beforehand concerning the words and ideas they shall utter before a congregation; it is true they are commanded, in the revelations which God has given, to treasure up in their minds continually the words of life.
Why is it that we are required, as the servants of God, to treasure up in our minds the words of life? It is in order that we may have a store of knowledge and information--it is in order that we may understand true principles--true doctrine, upon all subjects that pertain to the welfare of man, that the mind being filled with understanding, light, knowledge, truth, theory, and with a knowledge of things God has revealed, may be able to communicate at the very moment that part or portion of the same which God shall be pleased to impart to the congregation, suited to their capacity and circumstances; this is not taking thought beforehand what we shall say. If we should treasure up the words that God has revealed--that are written in the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and in the various revelations that God has given in latter times, (I mean the printed and written ones,) together with what he has revealed in ancient times; if we should get it all imprinted upon the tablet of our minds, it would not be taking thought before hand what we should say.
When we arise to speak before a congregation, if we place our dependence upon God to inspire us with the Holy Spirit; to bring forth not only the knowledge and information in regard to things that are written, and things that have been revealed, but to communicate new ideas, instructions, and information by the power of the Holy Ghost, we shall thus be able to edify.
Sometimes when I arise before a congregation of the Saints, here in the Valleys of the Mountains, I look at myself naturally, and think over naturally in my own mind, How can I edify this people? What can I say to them that has not already been said? This is a weakness in human nature. These meditations and reflections ought not to have any bearing upon the mind; God has wisdom sufficient; He has knowledge sufficient, and understanding, and light, and truth to communicate something for the benefit of the people, though they may have been instructed for long period, and been well informed in doctrine and principles. Sometimes the Lord does not see proper to impart any new ideas to the speaker, but rather to influence his mind to dwell upon old things, or in other words, that which has already been made manifest, for the purpose of communicating more clearly, or impressing upon the mind more forcibly, the importance of attending to that which has already been spoken and revealed.
We are only sojourners here, stopping here for a short period of time, and while we are here we often meet together. What for? To learn some thing that is calculated to benefit us temporally or spiritually. Indeed everything with which we are surrounded, every circumstance that we may be placed in, everything with which we have to do, if properly used, is calculated to benefit the mind of man. That is the object of all the works of God, to benefit living beings--beings that are capable of being made happy--capable of receiving joy and peace, all His works from the beginning to the end, (if there be any beginning or end, which we doubt very much,) are calculated in their nature to render happy, living, intelligent beings. That is the reason we are here--the reason we have come from distant countries, from foreign lands, and congregated in these valleys; it is in order that we may be more happy, and more fitted to gain that experience that is calculated to make us more happy. We are looking forward to a time when we shall be exceedingly happy; that is natural to the mind of man; it is on the stretch looking forward to the period when it shall be far more happy than at present. We are inquiring how, and by what means, or by what course of conduct, we can make ourselves more happy than at the present time. Some people pursue one course and some another; mankind have their various paths, walks, and courses, there are almost as many courses as there are people upon the face of the earth; and they are travelling in these paths and roads: each one seeking his own happiness, and perhaps, in few instances, the happiness of some others. Some take a road of sin and wickedness to secure happiness, but, in the end, they will find themselves literally disappointed. In travelling these great variety of paths, they find that it does not produce the result they hoped for--it does not bring happiness, nor give to them joy. There is something, connected with the travels of the people, and the courses that they mark out for themselves, that is calculated very frequently to leave a bitter sting upon the consciences. They suppose they can be happy in pursuing a certain course, but they find themselves miserably disappointed.
The Lord is gathering His Saints into this valley in order to instruct them how to be happy; that is the ultimate object and aim He has in view: He desires us to be well instructed, and to have the straight and narrow path laid out plain before us, showing us, from time to time, what steps are necessary to be taken, that will lead to the greatest amount of happiness; and if we follow them and continue in the path, we shall find that our light will grow brighter and brighter, our happiness greater and greater, and our joys will become more and more intense, until, in the eternal world we shall be swallowed up, as it were, with a fulness of joy--a fulness of happiness.
We are all the time, as I have already observed, looking forward to something ahead of our present condition, to something that is future.
We believe in a future state; it is a kind of natural instinct in the mind of man, to believe in a never ending hereafter. When he lays down his mortal body in the silent tomb, and it crumbles back to its mother earth, he does not believe that the destruction of the mortal body, is the last of the being called man; he believes that there is something there besides the tabernacle of flesh, that will live, move, and have a being forever. Furthermore, when we reflect more fully upon this subject, we believe that the something which dwells in this flesh and bones, is the only being that is capable of being made happy.
We have often been told this, from this stand; and it has often been told, among the congregations of the Saints abroad, that it is the spirit of man, and not the mortal tabernacle, that enjoys, that suffers, that has pleasure and pain. But the mortal tabernacle is so closely connected with the spirit of man, and we have so long been in the habit of associating the pains and pleasures of the spirit with what is termed the pains and pleasures of the body, that we have almost worked ourselves into the belief that it is actually the body that suffers pain, and enjoys pleasure; but this is not the case; the body, so far as we know, is incapable of feeling; it is naturally incapable of it; it is only the spirit, that dwells within the body, that feels. However severely the body may be injured, it is not the body that discerns that injury, but the spirit, within the body, that discerns it. [The speaker here asked a blessing on the cup.] We were speaking concerning that being that we call ourselves, that dwells in this mortal tabernacle of flesh and bones. We were observing that so intimately are the body and spirit connected together, that we have become habituated to term the pleasures and pains that we experience, the pleasures and pains of the body; but this is not the case; the body of flesh and bones, when the spirit has left it, is incapable of any sensation whatever; it does not form any portion of that identity that belongs to ourselves as spirits; we are not aware of its pleasures or its pains; for it has neither; but we are aware that if our mortal tabernacle is injured or infringed upon, the spirit within is troubled and pained; but we have become habituated to call this the pain of the body.
I make these remarks in order to extend our ideas beyond this state of existence.
If the spirit while in the body is capable of suffering, of being acted upon from without the body, and of experiencing diverse sensation, if it is capable of intense joy, or intense grief, may we not suppose that when it is freed from the body, when the animal tabernacle is fallen into the dust, and returns to its former earth, the same spirit, unclothed and unshielded, standing naked, as it were, before God, and before the elements that He has made, will be acted upon then, more or less, by these same elements; and that the same spirit that is capable of suffering here, will be capable of far more intense suffering hereafter; the same spirit that is capable of great joy here, will be capable of far more intense joy and pleasure hereafter; and the same things of an external nature that are capable of producing intense pain here, are, under certain circumstances, capable of producing a hundred fold more pain hereafter? If this be the case, how important it is that we should take that course that the spirit may, in its future state of existence, be placed under circumstances where we can obtain the pleasure, joy, and happiness, and escape the pains, evils, and bitterness of misery, to which some spirits will be exposed.
Perhaps there may be in the future state a difference, a vast difference, in some respects, in the reflection of pain upon the spirit from what there is here; and in other respects there may be a similarity. There are many things connected with the spirit of man, in the intermediate state, that we do not know anything about; and then there are other things that we do know, so far as they are revealed, and no further; and then there are other things connected with the spirit of man between death and the resurrection that we may believe, but not have a certain knowledge of, but believe that such and such will be the case from analogy, from reason, from the nature of things. There has been but a little revealed to man on the subject of the intermediate state of the spirit, after it leaves this mortal tabernacle.
We are told in the Book of Mormon that the spirits of all men, as soon as they leave this mortal body, and return home to that God who gave them life, whether they be wicked or whether they be righteous, go back to where they once were; they return to their former state, to their former location and residence; they appear in the presence of the Being that gave them life.
What further are we told on the subject? That after we get back into the presence of God, and return home again, then it shall come to pass that the spirits of the righteous, those who have done good, those who have wrought the works of righteousness here upon the earth, shall be received into a state of rest, a state of happiness, of peace, a state of joy, where they will remain until the time of the resurrection. We are also told that another portion of spirits, another class of them that return home to God, after leaving this mortal tabernacle, are cast out, are sent off again, and are not permitted to stay at home, but are cast out into outer darkness, where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Now there must be some intense suffering, some intense misery in connexion with the wicked class of spirits in order to cause them to weep and to wail.
We might now inquire, what is the cause of this intense suffering and misery? Is it the action of the elements upon the spirit? Is it the materials of nature, operating from without upon it, that causes this distress, this weeping, wailing. mourning, and lamentation? It may be in some measure; it may help to produce the misery and the wretchedness; but there is something connected with the spirit itself that no doubt produces this weeping, wailing, and mourning. What is this something? It is memory, and remorse of conscience; a memory of what they have once done, a memory of their disobedience. Do you not suppose the spirits can have power to remember in that world as well as in this? Yes, they certainly can. Have you never read in the Book of Mormon, where it informs us, that every act of our lives will be fresh upon the memory, and we shall have a clear consciousness of all our doings in this life? Yes; we have read that in the Book of Mormon--"<a clear consciousness>."
We read or learn a thing by observation yesterday, and to-day or to-morrow it is gone, unless it be something that impresses us distinctly, that makes a vivid impression upon the mind, that we can remember it perhaps for days, months, and years; but common information and knowledge are constantly coming into our minds, and as constantly being forgotten. And some of the knowledge we receive here at one time becomes so completely obliterated, through the weakness of the animal system, that we cannot call it to mind, no association of ideas will again suggest it to our minds; it is gone, erased, eradicated from the tablet of our memories. This is not owing to the want of capacity in the spirit; no, but the spirit has a full capacity to remember; for do you suppose that God in begetting spirits in the eternal world would beget an imperfect thing, that had no capacities? No. The Being, who is full of intelligence, knowledge, and wisdom, and acting upon the great principles that are ordained for the generation of living beings, spiritual beings, brings them forth with capacities capable of being enlarged or extended wider and wider; consequently it is not the want of capacity in the spirit of man that causes him to forget the knowledge he may have learned yesterday; but it is because of the imperfection of the tabernacle in which the spirit dwells; because there is imperfection in the organization of the flesh and bones, and in things pertaining to the tabernacle; it is this that erases from our memory many things that would be useful; we cannot retain them in our minds, they are gone into oblivion. It is not so with the spirit when it is released from this tabernacle.
I might refer to the words of many of the Prophets upon this subject, but every person of reflection and observation knows that the imperfection of the tabernacle does have a bearing upon the memory, as well upon other faculties and powers of man. It has been proved that when the skull has been depressed by accident, or in the way of experiment, every particle of the knowledge that the person has possessed has been entirely suspended. Relieving the skull from the pressure, things come fresh again into the mind; this shows that the spirit has not lost its capacity for memory, but it is the organization of the tabernacle that prevents it from remembering. Wait until these mortal bodies are laid in the tomb; when we return home to God who gave us life; then is the time we shall have the most vivid knowledge of all the past acts of our lives during our probationary state; then is the time that we will find that this being we call man--this spirit that dwells within the tabernacle, is a being that has capacity sufficient to retain all its past doings, whether they be good or bad.
It is, then, this memory that will produce the suffering and the pains upon that class of spirits whose works have been wicked and abominable in the sight of God. A spirit, then, will remember, that "at such a time in yonder world, and at such a place, I disobeyed the commandments of God; I did not hearken to the counsel of those whom God had appointed to be my counsellors; I did not give heed to the man of God; no: but I rejected his sayings; good counsel was imparted to me, but I did not heed it." In this life, things that may have been erased from your memory for years will be presented before you with all the vividness as if they had just taken place. This will be like a worm upon the conscience; it will prey upon the spirit, and produce unhappiness, wretchedness, and misery. This will cause you to lament, and mourn, and weep after you are cast out from the presence of God--from the home to which you have returned.
I am speaking now of the wicked. What is it that produces the opposite principle? There is an opposition in all things; it is the reflection of the memory that produces joy; that is one of the elements by which joy and happiness are produced upon the spirit of man in the future state; we remember the acts of our past lives that they have been good; we perceive by our memories that we have been obedient to counsel; we perceive that when we have erred through our weakness we have repented of that error; when we have been told of a fault we have forsaken it. When we look back upon acquaintances and neighbors we perceive that we have observed the golden rule, to do unto others as we would that others should do unto us. We look back upon our past lives, and we perceive we have never spoken evil against a brother or sister, that we have never striven to stir up family broils, and that we have never desired to injure any of the children of men, male or female. What do these reflections produce? They produce joy, satisfaction, peace, consolation, and this joy is a hundred fold more intense that what the spirit is capable of perceiving or enjoying in this life. Why? Because just in proportion to the vividness of the conscience, or the memory, so will be the joy. This you may have knowledge of by every-day experience; just in proportion to the vividness of your ideas, and of the truth set before your minds, and or the good things that are imparted to you, the more intense is your happiness here; how much more intense would it be hereafter, when this mortal clog with all its imperfections has been laid down in the gravel. The fact is, our spirits then will be happy, far more happy than what we are capable even of conceiving, or having the least idea of in this world.
Our happiness here is regulated in a great measure by external objects, by the organization of the mortal tabernacle; they are not permitted to rise very high, or to become very great; on the other hand it seems to be a kind of limit to our joys and pleasures, sufferings, and pains, and this is because of the imperfection of the tabernacle in which we dwell; and of those things with which we are surrounded; but in that life everything will appear in its true colors; in my estimation not a single thought of the heart, that has ever passed through the mind, not a single act of an individual, from the earliest period of its memory till the time it comes into the presence of God, will escape the notice of the memory when it appears there, unclogged from this tabernacle.
Are there any other circumstances that will produce pain or joy, besides that which is connected with the spirit--besides its own conscience or memory? Yes, a great deal will depend upon the place of the residence of these spirits. Suppose you were a righteous spirit, and you were cast out to dwell a certain time; not cast out, but sent out, on a mission to the abodes of darkness, or to those who are not as righteous as yourselves; though you might have peace of conscience and happiness dwelling within your own bosoms in reflecting upon your past conduct, yet the society with which you are compelled to mingle for a short period, in order to impart knowledge and wisdom and such information as is calculated to benefit them, is, in a measure, disagreeable; you are compelled, for a season, to mingle with those who are inferior to yourself in their capacities. When you go and associate with them there is something disagreeable in the nature of this association; you feel to pity them in their ignorance, in their condition and circumstances; their conversation is not agreeable to you as that of your own associates in the presence of God. There is something that is calculated to render their society disagreeable to themselves, which increases as the degradation of the society is increased. Then a wicked man entering into the company of such beings has not only a hell within himself--a conscience gnawing like a worm, but he sees misery and wretchedness; and they cleave one to another in their wickedness, and in their conversation, and acts, and doings, and intercourse with each other; all these things are calculated in their nature to produce misery and wretchedness, as well as their own consciences. It should then be our constant study to escape this order of things. We are free and independent; it is all in our hands whether to escape this order of wretchedness and misery, and the abodes of the wicked in the spiritual world; we can dwell in the society of the righteous, or in the society of the the [sic] wicked, just as we choose. As the revelation states, all intelligence and all truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it to act for itself, consequently you and I are the ones to make ourselves happy by taking the course pointed out by our superiors, by those who have a right to teach, control, and direct us. It is for us to create a heaven within our own minds. It is for us to choose the place of our abode, either among the spirits of the just or the spirits of the damned.
We have spoken of the memory of spirits in the future state; the same principle will apply to many other faculties of the mind of man, as well as memory; knowledge for instance. How limited, how very limited, in its nature is the knowledge of man in this life. Why is it that our knowledge is so limited? I say limited, compared with that which is to be known, and which will be known. The reason is, God has seen proper in His infinite wisdom to place us in circumstances where we can learn the very first elements of knowledge, and act upon them in the first place. Instead of having the whole of the rich treasures of knowledge and wisdom unfolded to us at once, He begins to feed us little by little, the same as you would feed a weakly, sickly infant with food prepared and adapted to its taste, and to the weakness of its system. The Lord brings us in this state under similar circumstances, endowed with certain senses by which we can gain, by little and little, knowledge and information; but it takes a long time to get a little into our minds. It seems that our spirits, that once stood in the presence of God, clothed with power, capacities, wisdom, and knowledge, forget what they once knew--forget that which was once fresh in their minds.
But, inquires one, "Do you have an idea we had once much information and knowledge in the spirit world?" Yes, we had a great deal of knowledge and information, but to what extent I know not; suffice to say we had much knowledge, we were capable, when the morning stars sang together for joy, when the foundations of this earth were laid, of lifting up our voices and shouting aloud for joy. What produced this joy? The contemplation of a world on which we were to receive our probation, and have tabernacles of flesh and bones, and obtain our redemption. All these things were known to us in our anterior state, but we have forgotten them all. We knew then about the Redeemer--about Christ, but we forgot it in our infantile moments.
As soon as our spirits were enclosed in this tabernacle all our former knowledge vanished away--the knowledge of our former acts was lost, what we did then we know not; we had laws to govern us; how obedient to them we were we know not; how faithful we were we know not, we had a contest with the one third part of the hosts of heaven, and we overcame them; and then the Lord made an earth where we might have a second probation, and forget all we once knew concerning the battles we had fought, before we came here, against Lucifer the son of the morning. We forget about the laws that were given to govern us in that spiritual state. Why all this? If we came here with all the knowledge we formerly possessed, could we be again tried as those who possess only the first principles or knowledge? We must begin at the alphabet of knowledge; and when once we begin to gain knowledge and information the Lord tries us to see if we will comply with that, and if we do, He gives us more, in this probationary state; but after we have gained all we can here, it is nothing compared with that immense fulness, which it is the privilege of the children of men to obtain in the future state of existence.
Our knowledge here is, comparatively speaking, nothing; it can hardly be reckoned the elements of knowledge. What few glimmering ideas the wisest of us get, we obtain by experience, through the medium of our senses, and the reflecting powers of the mind.
Some people suppose that we do not acquire scarcely any knowledge, only what we get by seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling; we may not, in one sense of the word, but in another sense there is a vast amount of knowledge which we gain by reflection; the solving of mathematical problems from beginning to end is not brought about by seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or feeling, unless the mind can feel them; we reason from one step to another until we solve the proposition. There is a vast field of knowledge, pertaining to this state, that mankind can gain through the medium of their reflecting or reasoning powers; and then there is another vast field that they can explore through the medium of their senses. I am now speaking of temporal knowledge.
We became acquainted with light and color through the organization of our bodies. In other words the Lord has constructed the mortal eye and framed it in such a manner that it is capable of being acted upon by one of the elements of nature, called light; and that gives us a great variety of knowledge. A blind man knows nothing about light, as we were told here the other day by our President, the blind man knows nothing about light if he were born blind. You cannot, by talking with him for a thousand years, instil into his mind an idea what red, yellow, white, black, green, blue are like; they are ideas that have never entered into his mind. Why? Because the little inlet to this kind of knowledge is closed up, and there is no other part of the spirit exposed to the light. It is only a small place by which the spirit can converse with light and its colors. Just so in regard to many other ideas.
Take a man who is perfectly deaf, who was born deaf, so that no sound has ever entered his ears; what does he know about music? about the various sounds that are so beautiful to the mind of man? He knows nothing at all about it, neither can it be described to him.
A man that has always been deprived of the organ of smell, has no other inlet of knowledge by which he can know and understand the nature of smell; he cannot see a smell, or hear a smell; it can only be perceived by this little organ called the nose; that is the only way these ideas can get to the spirit. If he ever knew them before he came here, he has forgotten them, which is the same as if he had never known them; and if he wishes to gain an idea of the sensations produced by the elements of nature, he must learn them anew by these media. If a man be devoid of taste what can he know about sweet and sour? You might as well talk to him about the bounds of time and space, and get him to comprehend a heaven located beyond their limits, as to comprehend what sweet and bitter are, or tell the difference between a piece of sugar and vinegar, so far as its taste is concerned.
So with regard to touch. There are many things we cannot feel, yet we have knowledge of them; we cannot feel the sun, moon, stars, and comets, and many other things; and if it were not for some senses that give a knowledge of them we should be wrapped in total ignorance concerning them. How do we know, when this spirit is freed from this mortal tabernacle, but that all these senses will be greatly enlarged? If we, by looking through these little eyes of ours, can see objects some thousands of millions of miles distant; if we can see objects that are existing at that immense distance through the medium of these little inlets; suppose that the whole spirit were uncovered and exposed to all the rays of light, can it be supposed that light would not affect the spirit if it were thus unshielded, uncovered, and unclothed? Do you suppose that it would not be susceptible of any impressions made by the elements of light? The spirit is inherently capable of experiencing the sensations of light; if it were not so, we could not see. You might form as fine an eye as ever was made, but if the spirit, in and of itself, were not capable of being acted upon by the rays of light, an eye would be of no benefit. Then unclothe the spirit; and instead of exposing a small portion of it about the size of a pea to the action of the rays of light, the whole of it would be exposed. I think we could then see in different directions at once, instead of looking in one particular direction; we could then look all around us at the same instant. We can see this verified, in some small degree, by bringing to our aid artificial means. Look at the telescopes invented, of what advantage are they? Why, they bring a greater number of rays of light together, and concentrate them upon the retina of the eye. The glasses within the telescope are so constructed as to bring the rays of light to a focus; and when they are placed properly in that instrument it brings a larger number of rays upon the eye, so that it brings objects we cannot see with the natural eye within the power of our vision, thus we are enabled to see many glorious objects in the heavens, that the natural eye could never have gazed upon.
Let the spirit itself be a telescope; or in other words, let there be a million of times more of the surface of the spirit exposed to the rays of light, than is now exposed through the medium of the eyes, or were this body of flesh and bones taken off, and the whole spirit exposed to the rays of light; would not these rays produce an effect upon the spirit? Yes; inasmuch as it is inherently capable of such effects, independent of flesh and bones. Then there would be a vast field opened to the view of the spirit, and this would be opened not in one direction only, but in all directions; we should then have the advantage of the telescope, though it were as large as Lord Ross's, whose object glass is six feet in diameter. What great improvement it would be if a telescope could be invented, to bring the rays of light on other parts of the spirit, besides the eye. Such will be the case when this tabernacle is taken off; we shall look, not in one direction only, but in every direction. This will be calculated to give us new ideas, concerning the immensity of the creations of God, concerning worlds that may be far beyond the reach of the most powerful instruments that have been called to the aid of man. This will give us information and knowledge we never can know as long as we dwell in this mortal tabernacle. This tabernacle, although it is good in its place, is something like the scaffolding you see round about a new building that is going up; it is only a help, an aid in this imperfect situation; but when we get into another condition, we shall find that these imperfect aids will not be particularly wanted; we shall have other sources of gaining knowledge, besides these inlets, called senses.
In relation to this matter, touching the extension of our knowledge year after year, some people have thought that we should have to learn everything by study. I do not believe it; there are a great many ways of learning things without reasoning or studying them out; without obtaining them through the medium of the five senses. Man will be endowed, after he leaves this tabernacle, with powers and faculties which he, now, has no knowledge of, by which he may learn what is round about him. In order to prove this, let me refer you to some things in some of the revelations which God has given. What is said about the brother of Jared? It is said that the Lord showed him all the children of men previous to his day, and all that were on earth at the time he lived, and all that would be to the end of time. How do you suppose he beheld them? Did he look at them with his natural eyes? How long do you suppose it would take a man to see all that are now living, if he only employed one second to look at each individual? It would take him a long time; it would take him over thirty years. In order to see them all, he must place his eye upon them all. If a man look at one individual in this assembly, though he may indistinctly perceive, on each side of that individual, a vast variety of faces, yet there is only one person that he sees distinctly; the rest only produce very indistinct images upon his vision. So with the brother of Jared; if he had looked at each individual of all the generations for one second successively, it would have taken him over three thousand years to have beheld them all.
There must be some faculty or power natural to God and to superior beings, that man, in this life, is not in possession of in any great degree, by which they can look at a great variety of objects at once. The brother of Jared could look upon past, present, and future generations; they all came before him, and he gazed upon them all; there was not a soul that he did not behold.
Moses also had a similar view; he, at a certain time, was clothed upon with the glory of God; and while he was thus clothed upon, he was enabled to behold many things; and seeing some things that looked very glorious, he wanted to see more; but the Lord said unto him, "No man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory and afterwards remain in the flesh;" that is, it would consume him; the sight would be so overwhelming that the mortal tabernacle would melt away. Should a mortal man be permitted to gaze upon all the works of God, which include all His glory, mortality could not endure it. But the Lord did condescend to give him, in a measure, the same principle that He Himself is in possession of; for the Lord beholds all His works. He says, "Mine eye can pierce them all," after telling us that the number of worlds were greater than the number of particles in millions of earths like this. Jesus says that he "looked forth upon the wide expanse of eternity," and that "all things are present before mine eyes."
Now, the Lord imparted a portion of this principle to Moses. Let us see how it operated on his vision. As soon as Moses got this new principle, not natural to man, what did he behold? He looked upon that which mankind never can look upon in this natural state, without the aid of the same principle; he beheld every particle of the earth, or, as the new revelation says, and there was not a particle of it that he did not behold, discerning it by the spirit of God. What an excellent telescope! Did the Spirit of God impress it by the rays of light upon the retina of the eye only? No: the vision was exhibited to the mind, independent of the natural eye. Instead of acting upon the mere eye, every part of the human spirit could behold and discern, through the medium of that all-powerful substance--the Spirit of God, every particle of this earth. How long would it have taken Moses to have gazed at each particle separately, with the natural eye? While he was gazing with the eye at one, he could not be looking directly at another. It would have taken him a great many millions of years to have gazed directly and distinctly upon every particle of the earth, as we naturally see things in succession. But, instead of this, we find him, in a short space of time, perhaps the interval was only a few minutes or hours, gazing upon every particle of it. Here was something new, and independent of the natural vision, showing him things beneath the surface of the earth. Men look at things above the surface by the natural eye; but here is a man who, by the power of heaven, is enabled to penetrate that which the natural eye could never behold. Suppose that the spirit of man were unclogged from this mortal tabernacle, the Lord could show him the particles of million on millions of worlds, in the same way, and with the same ease, that he showed Moses the particles of one.
By the same power and principle that Moses beheld every particle of this earth, he could have looked at the moon, and beheld every particle of it; and the same power could have shown him every particle of the sun, planets, comets, and fixed stars.
Here, then, is a new faculty of knowledge, very extended in its nature, that is calculated to throw a vast amount of information upon the mind of man, almost in the twinkling of an eye. How long a time would it take a man in the next world, if he had to gain knowledge as we do here, to find out the simplest things in nature? He might reason, and reason for thousands of years, and then hardly have got started. But when this Spirit of God, this great telescope that is used in the celestial heavens, is given to man, and he, through the aid of it, gazes upon eternal things, what does he behold? Not one object at a time, but a vast multitude of objects rush before his vision, and are present before his mind, filling him in a moment with the knowledge of worlds more numerous than the sands of the sea shore. Will he be able to bear it? Yes, his mind is strengthened in proportion to the amount of information imparted. It is this tabernacle, in its present condition, that prevents us from a more enlarged understanding. Moses understood all he saw, so far as the Lord pleased to show him; and if the Lord showed him all the properties, qualities, and connexions of those particles, he would have understood it.
There is a faculty mentioned in the word of God, which we are not in possession of here, but we shall possess it hereafter; that is not only to see a vast number of things in the same moment, looking in all directions by the aid of the Spirit, but also to obtain a vast number of ideas at the same instant. Here, we have to confine ourselves in a little, narrow, contracted space, and we can hardly think of two things at a time; if we do, our minds are distracted, and we cannot think distinctly. Some, by habit, it is true, are able to think of two or three little things at once, or at least the interval between the successive thoughts is so small as to be inappreciable. Some people play on an instrument of music, and may go through a very difficult performance, while their minds are thinking of something else; and by habit, they hardly perceive the working of the musical instrument.
I believe we shall be freed, in the next world, in a great measure, from these narrow, contracted methods of thinking. Instead of thinking in one channel, and following up one certain course of reasoning to find a certain truth, knowledge will rush in from all quarters; it will come in like the light which flows from the sun, penetrating every part, informing the spirit, and giving understanding concerning ten thousand things at the same time; and the mind will be capable of receiving and retaining all.
Says one, "Shall we have all knowledge?" I have nothing to say about that; that is a matter that you must look to our President for information upon; he is the one to hear upon that subject; and we should not teach anything, when we once ascertain his real mind, that will come in contact with his teachings. I do not know that I have this day presented any views that are different from his: if I have, when he corrects me, I will remain silent upon the subject, if I do not understand it as he does. So with regard to any other principle whatever which I may teach. God has placed him as the President of this Church, as our leader, guide, and teacher, and we are bound not to come in contact with him--not to teach differently to what he does; that is, when we once ascertain fully his mind and views. But, very frequently, mankind are so imperfect, and their minds so contracted, and their knowledge so little, comparatively speaking, that they may throw out many ideas that may not be true, that are incorrect: but the Lord has appointed these that hold the keys, to correct and give us instructions on all principles of doctrine; and as often as they see proper to turn the keys and unlock to their own minds these principles, they can do so. It is not always wisdom to use the keys of knowledge and revelation upon trifling subjects. There may also be many subjects that it is not wisdom for us to understand and receive at present. There may be many items of knowledge in the bosom of God, in the eternal worlds, that He does not see proper to reveal to us, while in our mortal state; consequently, people may differ with regard to their views of those things not revealed, and which they do not understand. In many of my remarks and teachings, I may have laid before you ideas, which, when you come to learn the President's mind upon them, may be declared erroneous and not sound doctrine. I may have done the same things in many of my writings; but in all points of doctrine, relating to the plan of salvation, and the redemption of man, so far as I understood it, I have endeavored to write that which I, at the time, verily believed to be true. Some of those things may be wrong; I do not say that I am capable, without direct revelation, of writing upon many intricate points, with the same degree of perfection and precision as one who writes only as he is inspired. But I do feel thankful to that God who has placed us in these Valleys of the Mountains, that He has ordained keys by which knowledge and information may be poured down from the great fountain, until we gain all that is necessary for us to know in this state: and I do look forward with great rejoicing at the prospects of the future.
When I speak of the future state of man, and the situation of our spirits between death and the resurrection, I long for the experience and knowledge to be gained in that state, as well as this. We shall learn many more things there; we need not suppose our five senses connect us with all the things of heaven, and earth, and eternity, and space; we need not think that we are conversant with all the elements of nature, through the medium of the senses God has given us here. Suppose He should give us a sixth sense, a seventh, an eighth, a ninth, or a fiftieth. All these different senses would convey to us new ideas, as much so as the senses of tasting, smelling, or seeing communicate different ideas from that of hearing.
Do we suppose the five senses of man converse with all the elements of nature? No. There is a principle called magnetism; we see its effects, but the name of the thing does not give us a knowledge of its nature, or of the manner in which the effects are produced. We know not why a piece of iron will turn towards a magnet this way or that. Now, suppose we had a sixth sense that was so adapted as to perceive this very thing, we should learn some new ideas, connected with the elements of nature, besides those we have learned by the five senses we already possess. I believe there are ten thousand things with which we are surrounded, that we know nothing about by our present natural senses. When the Lord imparts to us a principle by which we can look upon the past and future, as well as the present--by which we can look upon many intricate objects of nature which are now hidden from our view, we shall find our capacity for obtaining and retaining knowledge to be greatly enlarged.
We already have the capacity, and all it wants is to bring things into a situation to act upon it. The capacity is here; and when the Lord sees fit, it will be instructed and taught, and things will be unveiled--even the things of God, and the laws that have been hidden concerning the celestial, terrestrial, and telestial worlds, and concerning all the variety of things that are organized in the immensity of space, so far as the Lord sees proper to unfold them; and we shall learn more and more of them until the perfect day, as the Lord places us in circumstances to become acquainted with them.
I have dwelt upon this subject in order that we may be looking forward with joyful anticipations to the future. I am constantly looking to the future, as well as to the present, and trying to frame my present course of conduct in such a way as shall enable me to attain to that which is in the future for the faithful. If I had no knowledge or understanding of the future, it would be like a person pursuing a phantom that he did not know was of any worth; but the more knowledge we get of the future, the more we impress it upon our minds and in our thoughts, the more we will be stirred up in our exertions to do that which concerns us at the present moment, knowing that it has an all-important bearing upon the future.
FAITHFULNESS AND APOSTACY.
A Discourse by President Brigham Young, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 6, 1855.
Twenty-five years ago to-day this Church was organized with six members. More had been baptized by brother Joseph, but he having received a revelation to organize the Church, and only six members being present, they were all that were then incorporated. Many of the faithful brethren and sisters, who embraced the Gospel of salvation in the early days of the history of this work, have no doubt often looked over the ground this Church has traversed, and have been enabled to discern the invisible hand of the Lord in the preservation of this people in the various scenes they have passed through.
Many times, to all human appearance, there was no temporal salvation for the Saints. Again, those who were not faithful, beholding things as the natural man beholds them, have left the Church; yes, scores of them, hundreds of them, thousands of them, both male and female. They looked at this kingdom, and, considering its progress upon seemingly natural principles, discovered it was best for them to leave it, and if possible save their lives. Those who have been faithful can witness this day, that those who have sought to save their lives have lost them, while those who have sought diligently to build up the kingdom of God, who have clung to the commandments of the Lord, who have not counted their lives dear to them, have saved their lives.
It is marvellous, it is marvellously strange, and truly it is a marvellous work and a wonder, to those destitute of the revelations of Jesus Christ, when they reflect upon the history of this people, in their travels and progress; and it has been a wonder to all who have been acquainted with it.
Those who were acquainted with the rise of this Church, with the lives and acts of the few who then believed the Gospel, and with the lives and acts of many who surrounded them, discovered then that the powers of darkness, the powers of the enemies of all righteousness, were leveled against the few who believed in the Book of Mormon, and who believed that Joseph Smith was a Prophet. Whether they were six in number, or six times six, or whether there was but one, it made no difference. Just as soon as the Book of Mormon was declared to the people, or to a neighborhood, and proclaimed to be the history of the aborigines of our country, and to contain the will of God to the people formerly, and that the Lord Jesus appeared to the inhabitants of this continent and revealed to them the Gospel; that the kingdom of God was built up here; that the Lamanites were a remnant of the house of Israel; and that the set time had come for the Lord to favor Zion and gather Israel; at that very time, on that very day, the powers of darkness were arrayed against the Prophet, against the Book of Mormon, and those who believed it to be what it purported to be.
Has this spirit of persecution ceased? No, not in the least, but it has steadily increased. I was somewhat acquainted with the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, not only through what I read in the newspapers, but I also heard a great many stories and reports which were circulated as quick as the Book of Mormon was printed, and began to be scattered abroad. Then the spirit of persecution, the spirit of death, the spirit of destruction immediately seemed to enter the hearts of the pious priests more particularly than any other portion of the people; they could not bear it. Among those who professed great faith and great piety, and believed in the blessings of sanctification, and professedly believed in the ministering of angels, and in the gift of the Holy Ghost, and that it was the privilege of Christians to enjoy the gifts and graces of the Spirit now, as well as in ancient times, as quick as the Book of Mormon was introduced into conversation, a spirit would rise in them causing them to wish to destroy that book and every person who believed in it. They would say, "It is from hell, it is from the bottomless pit, it is of the devil; and those who believe in it ought to go to hell; it is a pity that such a delusion should be permitted to rise in our Christian country." Such expressions came from the mouths of religious priests, from the mouths of leading characters in society, from those who professed to hold the keys of salvation, and to teach the people the way of life. Has this spirit ceased? No, it has not, but it has constantly increased. And to my certain knowledge, through the visions of the spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, I did know, I did see, I did understand, before I went into the waters of baptism, that this spirit of persecution would increase. As the kingdom of God increased upon the earth, so would the power of the enemy increase in like manner, to keep pace with it; and there never would be a time, except for a short period, that this people would have rest, until Israel was fully gathered, was redeemed and built up, and the Lord had drawn the dividing line between the righteous and the wicked.
This Church has lived twenty-five years and is not dead yet, although a great many of its members have gone behind the vail. Those who were first baptized into the Church have almost entirely left this stage of action. I presume there is not a single person in this congregation who embraced the Book of Mormon in the fall of 1829, or in the fore part of the year 1830. The Prophet, his father, and his brothers, except one, are gone behind the vail. I suppose that Martin Harris and Joseph's mother are living, but Oliver Cowdery has gone to his long home, and most of the witnesses of the Book of Mormon have died; and I know of but very few in these valleys who embraced the faith of the Gospel in the early days of the rise of this Church. When I call to mind the multitudes with whom I have been acquainted in this kingdom, and reflect how few there are who have stood firm, and how many have apostatized, I often at first think it is strange, but again, it is no marvel, realizing as I do that every person who lives in this Church must be faithful. They cannot run by sight, but must actually exercise faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, in order to enjoy the light of the Holy Ghost. When they neglect this, the spirit of the world takes possession of them, and they become cold and fruitless, and pine away into darkness and spiritual death, and finally leave us. Will this continue? Yes.
Perhaps there are many who are astonished to see people apostatize, but it really is no marvel, it is no astonishment at all. If you wish to know the reason why they apostatize, it is because they neglect their duty, lose the Spirit of the Lord, and the spirit of the holy Gospel that they received when they first embraced it. Many receive the Gospel because they know it is true; they are convinced in their judgment that it is true; strong argument overpowers them, and they are rationally compelled to admit the Gospel to be true upon fair reasoning. They yield to it, and obey its first principles, but never seek to be enlightened by the power of the Holy Ghost; such ones frequently step out of the way.
Say they, "Mormonism is true, but I am not going to stand it; I am not going to abide this severe temporal loss; I am not going to stay here and have my rights trampled upon; I am not going to be checked in my career; I do not wish to be trammeled in my doings, but I want my liberty perfectly; still I believe it to be true with all my heart."
Well, right upon these statements, if such men only believe "Mormonism" to be true, and that too no stronger than they do, they are not so far ahead in this particular as the devils in hell, for they both believe and know that the Gospel is true. They believe and know that Jesus is the Christ; they believe in the Old and New Testament, and in the Book of Mormon, and know that they are true. They know when a true Prophet comes forth upon the earth; if they did not they would not raise up persecution against him. Not only believing, but knowing that the Gospel is true, they are arrayed in opposition to the truth, and lay every plan and scheme, that it is possible for devils to invent, to overthrow the kingdom of God on earth, that they may retain possession of the world still longer.
Will there still be apostacy? Yes, brethren and sisters, you may expect that people will come into the Church, and then apostatize. You may expect that some people will run well for a season, and then fall out by the way. For example, take the parable of the sower that went out to sow, "and when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: and when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: but other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundred fold, some sixty fold, some thirty fold."
When the seed falls into good ground it takes root, and brings forth fruit; such individuals will be faithful to the end. The seed that falls by the way side, for want of root cannot endure the scorching sun of persecution. Those who are represented by the seed among thorns cannot endure because of the cares of the world and the pride of life. The influence and power of the world, and of the adversary, surrounding such individuals, they are by and by turned away, and cease to be Saints, cease to serve the Lord, and turn every one to his own way. Is this strange to you? Yes, for a moment, you say it is very strange. What did you embrace "Mormonism" for? Some have embraced it for the truth's sake; some love the Gospel because it is the Gospel--because it is based upon true principles, and because it is the only system of doctrine revealed to the children of men, that is built upon a sure foundation. They love truth because it is truth, because it is light, and there is no darkness in it; and they fear not to come to the light that their deeds may be reproved, for they wish to get rid of their evil deeds. They love virtue because it is a holy principle by which the angels live; they love all the Gospel principles because they are connected with eternity, and are the foundation of eternal lives, and will exalt the faithful to happiness and felicity, to kingdoms of glory, power, and immortality, and to all tho knowledge and happiness that can be enjoyed by the intelligent beings who inherit eternity.
It is not for me to say how many embrace the Gospel for the sake of the loaves and fishes; but I really think, from their conduct, that many have embraced the Gospel to see if they cannot make gain of it; to see if there is any temporal advantage in it. Let this kingdom or this people prosper, let them be free from persecution at this day, let our friends, our relatives, our former neighbors speak well of us and tell the truth with regard to our temporal prosperity, as they would of other people, and what would be the result? Thousands would professedly embrace the Gospel for the advantages to be derived therefrom, to get a good name, and to obtain the riches which are of this world, and to be perfectly free from restraint. Let this kingdom prosper in a manner that all men will speak well of it, and let there be no trials, no threatenings, none to say, "You shall be killed, you shall be destroyed," but let all say "Peace shall be with you, we will bless you, we will neighbor with you, and hail you as our friends and brethren;" under such a state of things, thousands would professedly embrace the Gospel for the sake of living in peace, and to obtain the riches of this world; thousands would professedly embrace the Book of Mormon and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants for political advantages, for a great name, and to obtain what they are seeking after continually. What is that? To be spoken well of by everybody, to obtain power and great influence among men. Were I to give my own private opinion concerning the matter, I cannot say that a great many have come into this Church solely for the worldly advantages which they would derive therefrom. On the other hand, do all people join this Church with a pure intention? A great many embrace the Gospel to be free from the iron hand of oppression, under which they are labouring continually, from year to year, in servile chains, toiling to get a morsel of bread to subsist upon. They are ground down and afflicted; their wages are cut down to the last penny they can live upon, when they know that they must labor or die.
Thousands are in this pitiable condition, and would embrace anything, I do not care what under the heavens was preached to them. You may go and preach the doctrines of Universalism, of Infidelity, or of any other belief in the world, you may boil them down and get their very essence, and with it tell those who are oppressed and borne down by the rich and the great, "You shall be delivered from your factories, you shall make your escape from your shops of toil; we are preaching this to the poor; now embrace our system and our doctrine, and you shall be delivered from this iron hand of oppression. We will take you to a land of plenty, to a land of freedom, where you can enjoy your rights and be blessed, and have the privilege of obtaining, with comparative ease like other men, all the comforts of this life." What is their reply? "O, we will embrace your religion, if you will only take us away from these toils and this starvation." Many embrace the Gospel, actuated by no other motive than to have the privilege of being removed from their oppressed condition to where they will not suffer. They will embrace any doctrine under the heavens, if you will only take them from their present condition.
Are there any with us who act upon the same principle? O yes, you may, once in a while, see one who is acting upon that principle. Let persecution be heaped upon this people as it has been heretofore, even let the persecutors threaten, at the great distance from us that they are now, and those who have embraced the Gospel with motives that are not in every sense pure, will say, "I am for embracing something else to get rid of persecution; I am for leaving these Latter-day Saints, lest affliction, trouble, and persecution come upon me and I be killed, or be made to suffer in the flesh. I am going to leave for California, or for the United States, or I am going to do something; I want to do that which will free me from all earthly suffering and trouble." Do these considerations touch one who has embraced the Gospel because of its principles? No. Those who feel like forsaking the religion of Jesus Christ for such considerations, embraced it at first to better their temporal position in life, and for nothing else. This has always been the case with many, and when persecution has come, men and women have said, "I cannot bear it, I thought I was going to have happiness, and to enjoy life; I really supposed that my sorrows were all ended."
A great many have embraced the Gospel, believing that their sorrows would come to an end, at a certain period in this Church and kingdom, on the earth, and that too, speedily. I am a witness to this in my own experience and feelings. When I yielded obedience to the commandments of the Lord, the brethren were preparing to gather to a place that was called Zion, in Jackson County, on the western borders of the State of Missouri. I then actually had faith and the spirit of Zion to such a degree, that I supposed that if we got to Zion our worldly sorrows and afflictions would cease. I had not however a disposition to go there myself, for I wanted to go to the world and proclaim the word of the Lord that was revealed to me, and on that account I never had the privilege of settling in that county. The spirit of Zion which I then possessed is the spirit that inhabits the heavens and fills them, it is in and round about all heavenly beings.
When that spirit is imparted to individuals they realize it as it is in its purity, and are not mindful, at all times, that they are still embodied in a tabernacle of clay that is subject to the power of the devil, and that is liable to be afflicted at any moment, and to have severe trials, and be opposed and persecuted as long as they are in the flesh. But when the spirit that fills eternity is breathed into a person everything else is dispersed in a moment, and he sees Zion as it is in its purity, he then enjoys the spirit of Zion.
A great many people imbibed the same idea which I did in the beginning, and really believed that in Jackson County all the earthly sorrows, afflictions, disappointments, and weaknesses pertaining to the flesh would be at an end, and that every one would be sanctified before the Lord, and all would be peace and joy from morning until evening, and from year to year, until the Savior should come.
The brethren who went then found themselves mistaken, in a very short time. Those who went there, and those who were acquainted with their going and coming, found the world, the flesh, and the devil there, just as much as any where else, unless they had faith to turn every spirit of the world out of doors, that is, out of their hearts. They found the same tempter, the same covetous feelings, and the same allurements there, as in other places.
When our Elders go out to preach the Gospel, they tell the people to gather to Zion. Where is it? It is at the City of the Great Salt Lake, in the Valleys of the Mountains, in the settlements of Utah Territory--there is Zion now. But you perceive when you come here the same covetous feelings imbibed in the hearts of many, as in other places, the same tempter is here, and there are plenty of allurements; and unless the people live before the Lord in the obedience of His commandments, they cannot have Zion within them. They must carry it with them, if they expect to live in it, to enjoy it, and increase in it. If they do not do this, they are as much destitute of Zion here as they are in other places. Some inquire, "Why cannot we serve God in other countries as well as here?" You can just as well in England, in France, in Germany, in Italy, on the Islands of the Sea, in the United States, in California, or anywhere else, as you can here. "Well, then, let us go," say they. But hold on, you can serve Him just as well anywhere else, when it is your duty to be there. If it is not your duty to be anywhere else, if you would serve him acceptably, it must be where He calls you. To what part of the earth is the Lord now calling His Saints? He has opened up their way far into the interior of North America, they are widely removed from all surrounding civilization.
If you will examine the map you will find that we are located in an isolated portion of what? Of Zion. And what is Zion? In one sense Zion is the pure in heart. But is there a land that ever will be called Zion? Yes, brethren. What land is it? It is the land that the Lord gave to Jacob, who bequeathed it to his son Joseph, and his posterity, and they inhabit it, and that land is North and South America. That is Zion as to land, as to Territory, and location. The children of Zion have not yet much in their possession, but their territory is North and South America to begin with. As to the spirit of Zion, it is in the hearts of the Saints, of those who love and serve the Lord with all their might, mind, and strength. We have opened up the way, and come here, and what will you see? Just as much weakness and trouble as in any other place, if if [sic] you have a mind to make it--which you will if you do wickedly, and perform that which is derogatory to the principles of righteousness. We can make the territory of Utah one of greatest sinks of iniquity upon the face of the whole earth, and exceed the abominations of the ancient Sodomites, if we are so disposed.
The first founders of this Territory, those who dug their way through the mountains, cut the sage brush, killed the snakes, made the roads, built bridges and houses, opened farms, laid out and built cities where no white man ever thought that civilized people could subsist, unless they brought provisions from a distant country, can now assemble together surrounded with the comforts and many of the luxuries of this life. No white man who ever passed through this country believed that a settlement could be made in these mountains, and prosper in cultivating the earth. The Lord has brought us here, and what have we brought? Most certainly ourselves, and after we get here some want to go away, and say that the place is not holy enough for them, that they will not endure it, but will withdraw from this society, until we are pure enough, and then they will come back again. Such persons are like those who stayed in Jackson County, they are too pure and holy for themselves. But if they stay, they stay with themselves, and if they go, they take themselves with them, and that is their great difficulty. If they could leave themselves behind, we might succeed in cleansing them from sin; but no, they go and have to take themselves with them.
The Saints who first came into these valleys necessarily brought their tabernacles with them, but we endeavored not to bring any selfishness with us, any erroneous prepossessed notions, any feelings, laws, rules, or acts pertaining to ourselves, except such as the Lord should dictate day by day.
Suppose that every person who comes into these valleys should come with a determination to be led by the Lord, from day to day; suppose they should say, "I will serve my God and keep His commandments; I will not set a stake here, or there, or anywhere else; I will not say that I will rise up to-morrow, and go to this city, or to that town, to exchange and trade to get gain, only as the Lord will say, and this will I do from this time, henceforth and forever;" and then let each one faithfully maintain such a determination, and we could truly say that we have the Territory of Zion, and the spirit, light, glory, and power thereof, and that the God of Zion dwells with this people.
But if we bring our old traditions with us, our prepossessed feelings and notions of this, that, and the other; and set our stakes, build our habitations, and locate our position in accordance there with, and say, "I will do so and so, this is the path I will pursue, and I am determined to walk in it, regardless of everything else," then we may expect to be overthrown, and the spirit of the holy Gospel will depart from us. Then you would soon learn that there was no temporal, no natural prospect for this people to escape from utter destruction; and you would rise up and say, "I am off to California to save my life." But those who try to save their lives by their skill and craftiness, will lose them, both temporally and spiritually.
A great many say, "I believe the Gospel," but continue to act wickedly, to do that which they know to be wrong. I wish you to fully understand that merely believing the Gospel, that Jesus is the Christ, in the Old and New Testaments, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet sent of God, and that the Book of Mormon is true, does not prepare you to become angels of light, sons and daughters of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ to a divine inheritance. Nor does mere belief entitle you to the possession of the crowns and thrones that you are anticipating. No, such preparation can be made, and such objects attained only by doing the work required of us by our Father in heaven, by obeying Him in all things, letting our will, dispositions, and feelings fall to our feet, to rise no more, from this time henceforth, and actually operating upon the principle that we will do the will of our Father in heaven, no matter what comes upon us. Then, if you are going to be killed by your enemies, or destroyed by the adversary, you can say, "Kill away, destroy away."
True, the enemy of all righteousness, Lucifer, the son of the morning, the devil, is in possession of the world, and or nearly all that is in it, and says, "I am determined to destroy every man, woman, and child that will not yield to my kingdom, obey my mandates, and renounce the Lord Jesus Christ." But my determination is, not to renounce the Lord Jesus Christ and his commandments, but to keep his commandments faithfully, and let this people pursue the same course, and wait until the final issue, and see who will come off victorious in the great contest.
At present the enemies of all righteousness have the lead, and say, "Now you poor Mormons, are you not afraid that we can muster our thousands, and destroy every one of you?" "Go to hell," say I, "and be damned; for you will go there, and you are damned already." I can prove from the Scriptures that they are in hell, though sanctimonious persons consider it wicked to make such remarks. I also say, "Stay in the hell you are in, if you choose, or go to another if you can."
Are the people going to fear? If fear is in the hearts of any of you, it is because you do not pray often enough; or when you do pray you are not sufficiently humble before the Lord. You do not plead with Him until your will is swallowed up in His. If every one of the Latter day Saints lived up to their privileges, they would not fear the world, and all that they can no, any more than they fear that the cranes, that fly croaking three quarters of a mile above them, will drop their eggs upon them to dash their brains out. You might as well fear that event, as to fear all the forces of hell, if the people were sanctified before the Lord, and would do His will every day.
Are these ideas strange to you? Read and learn how the Lord protected the children of Israel in former days, even during their wickedness, and rebellion against Him.
Whenever a good man would say, "Cease your wickedness, turn from your idols, and seek to the Lord," and they hearkened to his counsel, then the Lord would fight their battles, and kill their enemies by scores and hundreds of thousands. And on one occasion the angel of the Lord slew one hundred and eighty-five thousand of those who came against His people to destroy them, "and when they arose early in the morning, behold, the were all dead corpses." So reads the Bible. The Lord fought their battles.
Again, Elisha's servant saw that there was more for them than all who were against them; he saw that the sides of the mountains were covered with "chariots of fire."
When the Lord commands those invisible beings, shall I say, those who have had their resurrection? yes, millions and millions more than the inhabitants of this earth, they can fight your battles.
Now, since one angel could fight their battles in former times, and overcome the enemies of the people of God, whom shall we fear? Shall we fear those who can kill the body, and then have no more that they can do? No, but we will fear Him who is able not only to destroy the body, but has power to cast both soul and body into hell fire.
There is an item of doctrine that I will now present just as it occurs to me. You are aware that many think that the devil has rule and power over both body and spirit. Now, I want to tell you that he does not hold any power over man, only so far as the body overcomes the spirit that is in a man, through yielding to the spirit of evil. The spirit that the Lord puts into a tabernacle of flesh, is under the dictation of the Lord Almighty; but the spirit and body are united in order that the spirit may have a tabernacle, and be exalted; and the spirit is influenced by the body, and the body by the spirit.
In the first place the spirit is pure, and under the special control and influence of the Lord, but the body is of the earth, and is subject to the power of the devil, and is under the mighty influence of that fallen nature that is of the earth. If the spirit yields to the body, the devil then has power to overcome both the body and spirit of that man, and he loses both.
Recollect, brethren and sisters, every one of you, that when evil is suggested to you, when it arises in your hearts, it is through the temporal organization. When you are tempted, buffetted, and step out of the way inadvertently: when you are overtaken in a fault, or commit an overt act unthinkingly; when you are full of evil passion, and wish to yield to it, then stop and let the spirit, which God has put into your tabernacles, take the lead. If you do that, I will promise that you will overcome all evil, and obtain eternal lives. But many, very many, let the spirit yield to the body, and are overcome and destroyed.
The influence of the enemy has power over all such. Those who overcome every passion, and every evil, will be sanctified, and be prepared to enjoy eternity with the blessed. If you have never thought of this before, try to realize it now. Let it rest upon your minds, and see if you can discover in yourselves the operations of the spirit and the body, which constitute the man. Continually and righteously watch the spirit that the Lord has put in you, and I will promise you to be led into righteousness, holiness, peace, and good order.
But let the body rise up with its passions, with the fallen nature pertaining to it, and let the spirit yield to it, your destruction is sure. On the other hand, let the spirit take the lead, and bring the body and its passions into subjection, and you are safe.
It is instructive to reflect upon the acts of men, to observe what prompts them to action, and to see how liable they are to get out of the way, how weak they are, how short-coming, how failing in their spirits to do the will of the Lord, and how fearful they are. Afraid of what? Do you reflect, and realize that your fear is all pertaining to your bodies, that it not pertaining to your spirits? Let me tell you, when the spirit is once separated from the body, it is one of the most beautiful and delightful objects that you could contemplate, and there is nothing that can give a pure spirit so much joy as to have the privilege of being separated from the body, and of going back to its Father in heaven, to await the morning of the resurrection.
Remember this when you are afflicted with fear and trembling, and are exclaiming, "Oh what shall we do?" Do you recollect what has been said here? I recollect that when I chastised certain individuals who were really not worth any body's notice, the cry of some was, "O, dear! we are all going to be destroyed, where shall I go to save my life, to the north, south, east or west?" That fear arose from the organization of the tabernacle, and not from the spirit within it.
The fear and trembling, the misgivings and wavering arise from the anxiety we have to know how to save ourselves pertaining to the flesh. That weakness is not exhibited in the spirit.
I am afflicted with it just as you are, but what do my judgment, the revelations of Jesus Christ, the Scriptures, and the spirit of the Gospel teach me? That my tabernacle is of comparatively small value, although it is a pretty fair one, and one that I am willing to take in the morning of the resurrection. The Lord gave it to me, and I am thankful for it. When it is the will of my Father that my spirit should return to Him, what do I care about the mouldering tabernacle, so that the spirit is unlocked, and set free from its prison-house of clay? It can go to the Father who gave it, until the body is resurrected, when the spirit will again be reunited with the tabernacle, to be exalted to thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, and spread abroad, and to the increase there shall be no end.
Fears arise from the weaknesses of the flesh, over which the devil has power. We should care, comparatively, but little about it; let it crumble, let it fall, and go back to its mother earth, and be reserved to the morning of the resurrection. I shall have this body again, then what need we care how quickly our bodies dissolve? All I care for it, in my spirit, in my judgment, and in my moments of reflection and revelation, is merely that I wish it to endure here to fight the tabernacles which devils dwell in, until the last one is driven from the earth. Then let my tabernacle stay here and contend with the fallen nature that it is heir to, and let my spirit rise triumphant over it, until every passion, feeling, and appetite is brought in subjection to the will of God. Let me stay here until I have accomplished this, and have done the work I was designed for in this my probation, then my spirit will be free from mobs and strife, and I can soar far above those who have power over them, even death, hell, and the grave.
I say to the Latter-day Saints, who are coming here by thousands and thousands, and who are coming into the Church by tens of thousands, begin to think, especially some of you first Elders, and ask yourselves how many you can bring to mind of those who are now in good faith in the Church, in proportion to the number that you have known to have come into it, and you will find that there are only a very few.
If you should hunt up many of these who have been baptized for some time, but have not yet gathered, and ask them if they believe that Joseph Smith was a true Prophet of God, and that the Book of Mormon is true, several of them will reply, "O yes." "Then why don't you gather with the Saints?" "O, I don't know; I am poor now; but I would very much like to gather with them." At the same time, I know that their feelings are, "If I go there I shall be persecuted, but if I live here I shall have peace with my neighbors, so long as I let religious matters alone, and here I can live without persecution, until my tabernacle is ready to return to the earth." What makes them have that fear of trials and persecutions? It is on account of their tabernacles. The spirit is not afraid. If it was free of the encumbrances of the tabernacle, no such fear would be manifested; and while we are in the flesh the Gospel is calculated to deliver those who live by its principles from all those fears.
I recollect many times when brother Joseph, reflecting upon how many would come into the Kingdom of God and go out again, would say, "Brethren, I have not apostatized yet, and don't feel like doing so." Many of you, no doubt, can call to mind his words. Joseph had to pray all the time, exercise faith, live his religion, and magnify his calling, to obtain the manifestations of the Lord, and to keep him steadfast in the faith.
Do you not know others who had manifestations almost equal to those Joseph had, but who have gone by the board? Martin Harris declared, before God and angels, that he had seen angels. Did he apostatize? Yes, though he says that the Book of Mormon is true. Oliver Cowdery also left the Church, though he never denied the Book of Mormon, not even in the wickedest days he ever saw, and came back into the Church before he died. A gentleman in Michigan said to him, when he was pleading law, "Mr. Cowdery, I see your name attached to this book; if you believe it to be true, why are you in Michigan?" The gentleman read over the names of the witnesses, and said, "Mr. Cowdery, do you believe this book?" "No, sir," replied Oliver Cowdery. "That is very well, but your name is attached to it, and you say here that you saw an angel, and the plates from which this book is said to be translated, and now you say that you do not believe it. Which time was you right?" Mr. Cowdery replied, "There is my name attached to that book, and what I have there said that I saw, I know that I saw, and belief has nothing to do with it, for knowledge has swallowed up the belief that I had in the work, since I know it is true." He gave this testimony when he was pleading law in Michigan. After he had left the Church he still believed "Mormonism;" and so it is with hundreds and thousands of others, and yet they do not live it.
If the Saints in the midst of these mountains would live their religion according to the best of their knowledge, according to what they see, feel, and hear, there is no power that could move them out of their place.
A great many of the new comers have been in the Church but a short time, but you may take the Saints as a body, from those who have been in the Kingdom twenty, and twenty-two years, to those who have embraced it but a few years past, and, according to my feelings and faith, and I will call upon every man and woman, who has got the Holy Ghost, to say whether I am right, faith and good works are rapidly increasing among this people. You know whether I tell the truth, or not. If they have not increased, for heaven's sake, for God's sake, for your own soul's sake, for Zion's sake, for Jerusalem's sake, and for the sake of scattered Israel, let them increase from this time henceforth. Let "Mormonism," the faith of the Gospel, which is "Mormonism," continue to increase, and cease all your evil deeds, and return to the Lord, and be honest and true. I tell you that a man cannot believe "Mormonism" as I do, and be a bad man.
You will find in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, and in the other revelations of God, that there is a clear distinction made between the sinner and the ungodly. A person to be ungodly must have known godliness, and must have a knowledge of what the Lord requires concerning him. There are many in the midst of this people who believe the Gospel with all their hearts, but yet do wickedly; this makes them ungodly. Do wickedly no more, but follow good works, and cherish faith and benevolence one to another.
PROGRESS OF THE WORK--CONSECRATION--PREACHING TO ISRAEL--THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES--SANCTIFICATION OF THE SAINTS.
An Address by Elder Orson Pratt, Delivered in the New Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, April 7, 1855.
With great pleasure I arise before this large congregation assembled here in the capacity of a General Conference. I feel great joy in having the privilege which is now granted to me to stand before you. What I may say, I do not know, but I trust in that God whom we all serve, that He will pour out upon us the Spirit of truth--the Comforter--that shall enable us to say those things which shall do you the most good.
I do not know that I shall be enabled to make the outskirts of this large assembly hear me, but I will speak as loud as I conveniently can.
I truly feel to rejoice, when reflecting upon the greatness of the work in which we are engaged; I rejoice with that joy which I am incapable of finding language to express. The Lord has truly accomplished great things during the twenty-five years that this Church has had an existence upon the earth--things that no man, unless he were filled with a very great measure of the Spirit of God, could have anticipated in the early rise of this Church. Nothing but the hand of an Almighty Being could have brought about a work of the magnitude which we behold before our eyes. It is the hand of the Almighty; it is the power which He has ordained, and the agencies that He has employed, which have performed that which we behold before us.
I have not only read the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but I have grown up, as it were, in their midst. It will be twenty-five years next September since I was baptized into this Church. At that time I am not aware that there were fifty persons who had been baptized into the Church. How many of those persons still live, and are in the faith, I know not; but I believe, from the testimony of our President, which was given before us in the tabernacle yesterday, that if we were to search through the lengths and breadths of our Territory, and among all the various Branches scattered abroad, there are but a very few individuals indeed, of those who embraced the work in the early rise of this Church, that are still living and strong in the faith. Many of them are gone to the tomb; their bodies slumber while their spirits are mingling with the just, waiting the sound of the trump to call them forth to glory, immortality, and eternal lives. How soon we shall follow and lay down these mortal tabernacles, we know not; neither do I, as an individual, care, if I can be prepared in all things, if I can be ready for that day, to stand in my lot and station, and receive the reward that is promised to those who endure in faith to the end; it matters not to me whether the time shall be longer or shorter; and I presume there are thousands now before me who feel on this subject in the same manner that I do; they care but a very little about this mortal tabernacle; they are looking for a building not made with hands, eternal in the heavens; they are looking for mansions that are prepared in the presence of God their Father; they are looking for immortality and eternal lives.
But we have no promise, unless we endure in faith unto the end; whether we live few or many years upon the earth, we must endure through all the trials, tribulations, difficulties, and persecutions which the Lord sees fit in His infinite wisdom to cause us, as individuals, or as a people, to wade through; we must endure them, and hold steadfast to the faith, if we would inherit the crowns of eternal lives that are promised to the faithful.
In speaking of this, I will qualify my language by saying, that the Saint who has been sealed unto eternal life and falls into transgression and does not repent, but dies in his sin, will be afflicted and tormented after he leaves this vale of tears until the day of redemption; but having been sealed with the spirit of promise through the ordinances of the house of God, those things which have been sealed upon his head will be realized by him in the morning of the resurrection. But it is my desire and my constant prayer that I may so live, that when I depart from this life--when I lay down this mortal body, (if I am called upon to lay it down before the coming of our Lord,) I may enter into the paradise of rest, and not only conquer Satan, and have power over him here, but have power over him and all his hosts hereafter. These are my feelings, these are my desires, and this is my prayer.
What am I willing to do to accomplish this? I will tell you what I feel willing to do. I am willing to do everything the Lord requires at my hands, so far as I understand His will concerning me. What is property? what is gold? what is silver? what are houses and inheritances, or any of the riches of this world, compared with the riches of eternal life? Have I anything that I have obtained by my own wisdom, or by my own exertions, independent of the hand and providences of the Almighty? No, I have not. The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof is His. I am in His hands, and all that I have is in His hands; and if the servants of God require it, if God desires all that I have, it is on hand, at any moment. These are my feelings; and should not these be the feelings of all the Latter-day Saints? (Voice, "Yes.")
We heard the testimony of our President from this stand this forenoon, concerning himself, and that which God has been pleased to put within his possession. God has been with him, and His hand has been over him for good, and He has blessed him in all things that he has set his hand to do, even as He blessed Joseph when he was sent down into Egypt. He has accumulated by the providence of the Almighty much of this world's goods; God has given it to him. You heard him express himself before you, that he had made arrangements to consecrate all that he has unto the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If, then, our President--a man of great possessions, with houses and lands, inheritances, cattle, and with an abundance, is willing to consecrate the whole of it for the building up of the cause of God, should not we be willing to follow in his footsteps? Yes, verily.
As I have said in days that are past, the time will come, (and how soon we know not,) but it will come, when this people will become of one heart and of one mind in temporal things, as well as in spiritual: they will as individuals be identified with the Church, and all they possess, whether it be gold, or silver, or jewelery [sic], or cattle, or flocks, or herds, or lands, or houses, or wives, or children, it matters not what they possess, it will all go as it shall please the Lord, according to His counsel, and His direction for the building up of this kingdom.
But you know that property is the Gentiles' god; it is sought after more eagerly than any other thing by the Gentile nations; it is worshipped by them, and their hearts are set on their treasures; and their treasures are of the earth and of an earthy nature; and it will take a long time for the Saints to get rid of their old idols--their idolatrous notions and traditions. The Gentile god has great influence even over the Saints; consequently it will take years to eradicate covetousness from our hearts; as our President has told us that the law relating to a full consecration of our property would perhaps be one of the last laws that would be fulfilled before the coming of Christ. Much patience and forbearance will need to be exercised before the Saints will get completely rid of their old traditions, Gentile notions, and whims about property, so as to come to that perfect law required of them in the revelations of Jesus Christ. But the day will come when there will be no poor in Zion, but the Lord will make them equal in earthly things, that they may be equal in heavenly things; that is, according to His notions of equality, and not according to our narrow, contracted views of the same.
Having said this much with regard to property, I wish now to say a few words in regard to one of the most glorious events which has taken place for a long time. It is in regard to sending the Gospel to the house of Israel. O how this ought to rejoice the hearts or the Saints! The Lord told us, in the early rise of this Church, something about the day that is now upon us, and we understood it in a measure; but now the period--the glorious period, has arrived, when we can see the thing fulfilling before our eyes. If you will read the revelations given in 1833, you will find in them a promise made, when the time should arrive for this Gospel to be sent to the house of Israel. If you will read another revelation given on the 7th day of March, 1831, you will there learn also concerning the fulfilment of the times of the Gentiles.
I wish to say a few words upon two subjects; first, the times of the Gentiles being come in; and second, their times being fulfilled, and the sending of the Gospel to the house of Israel.
In a revelation, given in March, 1831, (twenty-four years ago,) to the Prophet Joseph, concerning what Jesus said to the Apostles at Jerusalem, in regard to the last days, and the day of their redemption, etc., Jesus said to his Apostles, when that day shall come, and the light shall begin to break forth among them that sit in darkness, when the fulness of my Gospel shall begin to break forth, that is the period when "the time of the Gentiles shall come in." Mark the expression; when the light shall begin to break forth, then at that period the time of the Gentiles shall have come in, and in that generation "the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled."
Here then, we perceive the two distinctions, when the light begins to break forth; that is, when the Book of Mormon is translated, when the Church is organized, these events bring in the time of the Gentiles, and in the generation that the light breaks forth the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled. We are also told in the same revelation that the Jews who were to be scattered from old Jerusalem, should remain scattered, until the times of the Gentiles should be fulfilled; consequently, this is the reason why the Jews have not gathered since the rise of this Church. If they were gathered together--if they had assembled at old Jerusalem, it would have contradicted the prophecies and revelations God has given on this subject. They are to remain scattered, said the Lord, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, and their times are to be fulfilled in the generation that their time comes in, or when the light of the fulness of the Gospel begins to break forth.
Another revelation upon this subject says, that after the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, the servants of God should be sent forth to Israel. What shall then take place? Behold, "then cometh the day of my power." "Then," when the servants of God turn from the Gentile nations, and shall go forth by commandment of the Almighty, being sent by His Church, the voice of His people, and the Holy Spirit, unto the nations of Israel, "then cometh the day of my power," saith the Lord. What kind of power? He goes on to tell us, that it should come to pass, that the tribes and nations of Joseph should hear the Gospel in their own tongue, and in their own language, through those who are sent forth and ordained unto this power through the gift of the Holy Ghost shed forth upon them, for the revelations of Jesus Christ.
Now the Lord does not accomplish all things in twenty-four years, but He takes His own time to bring to pass the great work He is performing on the earth. Twenty-five years have passed away, and the voice of the Spirit in the servants of God now is, "Go forth to the house of Israel; for lo, the Gentiles count themselves unworthy of eternal life, go to the house of Israel, to the seed of Jacob, call upon them, hunt them out from the holes, the rocks, and from the dens of the earth; gather them together, that the covenants and promises made to their fathers my be realized and fulfilled." Israel are upon all the face of the earth. Some think that these American Indians are Israel, and we think that they are too; but they are only one part or portion of the twelve tribes; indeed, they are only a very small portion of the tribes of Joseph, the most of them being the descendants of Manasseh. But Israel dwell upon the islands of the sea, and in the countries and nations of Europe, in the various kingdoms and empires of Asia; some are scattered through Africa, and wherever you go you find the promised seed--the descendants of Jacob. And if we had the voice of a trumpet and could make our speech heard unto the ends of the earth, we would say to all the nations of our globe--to all peoples, kindreds, and tongues, "Hear ye, when the Lord sends forth a proclamation to Israel that are in your midst; for then shall be fulfilled that which is written, that all nations shall see the salvation of God, for His arm shall be made bare in the eyes of all people; it shall be made bare in power, in signs, in wonders, and in mighty miracles, to bring about His purposes unto the house of Israel."
Who, then, does not feel honored that has been appointed to such a mission by the servants of God during this Conference. Do the missionaries, do the Elders count this a light thing? They should have no such feelings as these; great things result from small beginnings, and the Lord delights to work among the children of men in this way, bringing about great results from small things, that is, from things that are apparently small. This was the case in regard to the organization of this Church with six members only.
Twenty-five years ago yesterday, we were organized into a Church capacity, to whom the Lord gave revelations through the Prophet, Seer, and Revelator who was in our midst, concerning the things that are now about to take place. From six members it has multiplied, and multiplied, until at the present time, there is scarcely a nation under the whole heavens, but what has heard the voices of the servants of the living God. This is something glorious; it is something that is calculated to give joy to the hearts of the Saints of the Most High. What can be more pleasing than to see the prophecies both of ancient and modern times fulfilling constantly before our eyes.
"But," inquire the people, "do you believe that the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled yet?" No; they are not fulfilled yet. Hundreds and thousands, and tens of thousands of the Gentiles among the various nations of the earth will yet bow to the fulness of the Gospel; and they will come, and the gates of Zion will not be shut day nor night, that the forces of the Gentiles may flow unto her. The Lord will continue to work among both Israel and Gentiles, and His power will increase, the more we send the Gospel among Israel; the more the servants of God seek for the seed of Jacob, the more will the powers of heaven be displayed for the redemption of that people. They are the promised seed; God has not forgotten the prayers of their fathers; Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob prayed for their posterity, and they had faith for them, and in them all the nations of the earth are to be blessed. And those that bow down and worship the works of their own hands will forsake their idols when the day of the Lord's power shall be made manifest in and through the chosen seed. Then will be fulfilled that which was written by the Prophet Ezekiel, that the Lord will gather them with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out: and He will assemble them in the wilderness, and there will He plead with them face to face, like as He plead with their fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt; thus saith the Lord, by the mouth of Ezekiel. He will plead with them by His power; He will plead with them by His angels; and He will plead with them by the revelation of His own face.
And this makes me think of the prophecy delivered by the Prophet Joseph, concerning the Elders in this Church. They were very anxious, in the early rise of the Church, to have the angels of God come from heaven to administer to them, and to have the face of the Lord unvailed in their midst, when they were unprepared for it. By sectarianism and the traditions handed down to us by our fathers, we were not prepared to abide the presence of those holy beings who dwell in the celestial worlds. Joseph, knowing this by the Spirit of truth, arose and said to the Elders, that when the time came that they should go forth unto the house of Israel, when that day should arrive, and their hearts were sufficiently purified before the Lord, then the Lord should appear unto them, that is, in His own time, in His own way, and after His own order, and in His own place. Now this will shortly be fulfilled. Let these missionaries go forth and endure troubles like good and faithful Elders; let them bear all afflictions and trials patiently; let them not be faint-hearted when they go hungry and thirsty; and when they suffer cold, and when they are in deep distress and sore difficulties; for be assured that the time is not far distant when God will fulfill these promises that He made by the mouth of His servant Joseph the Prophet; and the face of the Lord will be unvailed.
How pleasant--how glorious it would be, if we had proved ourselves in all things; if we had become pure in heart, with no unbelief, no evil, no abominations, but our hearts perfectly pure before God; if we could behold His smiling face, and look upon Him, and hear the words of His mouth, pronouncing blessings upon our heads. Would not this be worth sacrificing all things for? Yes; how pleasing--how glorious it would be, could we see those three old Nephites whose prayers have ascended up, for something like 1800 years, in behalf of the children of men in the last days, and have them return to their old native land, and find the kingdom of God prepared and pure to receive them, and could we hear their teachings, and their voices lifted up in our midst.
Should not this be cheering to our hearts. Yes. Is there anything too great for us to suffer or endure, or any sacrifice too great for us to make to be prepared to receive blessings of this description? No. Then let us wake up, and be assured that just as soon as we prepare ourselves for these blessings, so soon they will be upon our heads. Do you suppose that these three Nephites have any knowledge of what is going on in this land? They know all about it; they are filled with the spirit of prophecy. Why do they not come into our midst? Because the time has not come. Why do they not lift up their voices in the midst of our congregations? Because there is a work for us to do preparatory to their reception, and when that is accomplished, they will accomplish their work, unto whomsoever they desire to minister. If they shall pray to the Father, says the Book of Mormon, in the name of Jesus, they can show themselves unto whatsoever person or people they choose. The very reason they do not come amongst us is, because we have a work to do preparatory to their coming; and just as soon as that is accomplished they are on hand, and also many other good old worthy ancients that would rejoice our hearts could we behold their countenances, and hear them recite over the scenes they have passed through, and the history of past events, as well as prophecy of the events to come. How great and how precious are the promises of the Lord, contained in ancient revelation! how great and precious are the promises He is still making almost every week from the stand, by the mouth of the President whom He has appointed over all this Church! How earnestly has He plead with us as a people! Can we not bear witness? Would not the walls of this Tabernacle, if they could speak, bear witness how faithfully we have been warned, week after week, month after month, and year after year, to cease from all evil, to purify our hearts, to do the things that are required at our hands, and not merely say, "Yes, we will go and do it," but go and do it? It is the study of the servants of God, by day and by night, how to sanctify this people before God--how to lead them according to the law of righteousness, until they hate wickedness and abomination; and when the servants of God see evil rising in our midst they are filled with the spirit of justice, the Spirit of the Almighty fills their souls with indignation against all wicked works, and abominations, and dishonesty, and corruption that may enter these peaceful Valleys. Let us then give heed to the warning voice; let us not count these things as a mere song--as a trifling anecdote to amuse our ears, but let us endeavor to do the things that are required at our hands.
If we have property, let us tithe that property; if we have the privilege of consecrating all we have, and it is required, let us do it freely, and voluntarily, and that will be pleasing in the sight of God, trusting in Him who holds the heavens and the earth in His own hands, who holds the creations of eternity in His own hands, and sways His sceptre over kingdoms and worlds without number, and controls them according to His own will and pleasure. Has He not told us, in the early rise of this Church, if we would do His will, and seek the riches that is the will of the Father to bestow upon us, we should be the richest of all people; for the riches of eternity should be given to us, and it must needs be, saith the Lord, that the riches of the earth are mine to give. They are all His; how easily He could turn all the riches of the earth into our hands, if we were only prepared to receive them and use them according to His will. But He knows the time to hasten them, and He knows the secret intents of our hearts as a people; He knows whether we are prepared to use the riches of the earth to build up His kingdom or not,and He will withhold them, until the time shall fully come for Him to bless us according to the promise He has made--until we shall be prepared to receive them; we shall have riches then in great plenty. Gold will be so plentiful that we may find no use for it only to make culinary and other utensils; we may use some of it for paving our streets, and for whatsoever is necessary; we can use the gold and silver which we have not toiled for in the gold mines of California and Australia, to collect for ourselves; we shall have that which others have labored for, but were unworthy because of wickedness to enjoy.
We have heard the Elders of the Church give us some idea how this may be brought about. How easy it is for the Lord to stay the rains of heaven, as He did last season in the United States, and shut up the windows on high, that they should not pour out their refreshing showers on the earth, and cause the grain to wither away, and the earth to become barren and desolate, and to reduce the people to starvation; how easy it is for Him to cause these Valleys to be far more abundantly fruitful than heretofore, and to yield their strength in great profusion to the inhabitants of this Territory, and to make their granaries flow with plenty, so that they should hardly have room to contain it. Do you not think this would be tempting to the starving nations, and would they not give gold and silver, and riches, and all things that are now considered choice and valuable by them for that which would appease their appetites? Yes; the Lord can accomplish all this; the rains are in His hands; all things are in His hands to control just as we can control our bodily members; consequently the Lord is a very handy workman, and can bring about His purposes with scarcely any efforts on His part; all He has to do is to speak the word, and it is done.
Let us then, prepare ourselves for whatever shall take place--to be very rich or very poor; it matters not, if we are doing the will of God, whether we have an abundance, or are like the Indians of our Valleys, with scarcely anything to subsist upon from day to day. But if we do the will of God in all things we shall not be left in poverty and distress. Why? Because the Lord has made a decree upon this subject, you can read it in the Book of Covenants. He says, "Inasmuch as my people will hearken unto me, from this very hour, and do the things I command them, the kingdoms of this world shall not prevail against them." And again, "Zion shall flourish upon the mountains and upon the hills." That was said before we came to these Valleys, to inhabit this mountainous district; we were living on those low, broad, flat prairies of the west when He gave us this promise, that Zion should flourish upon the mountains and hills, and that His people should blossom as the rose. This promise was made upwards of twenty years ago, and you can bear me witness whether it is fufilled [sic] or not.
Has not Zion prospered on the mountains, and flourished on the hills? Yes, verily. Never were this people in as healthy a condition, or in as good circumstances as you see them at this day; and we shall flourish more abundantly; and as brother Kimball said to us this forenoon, our riches will be multiplied over five hundred fold if we do the will of God, and not labor for that which perisheth, to heap up riches, but try to keep the commandments of God, and labor for the truth's sake, because we love the truth, because we love honesty, and righteousness, and goodness; this should be the motive power that should prompt our actions--that should inspire us to do the will of God, because we love that which is good. Then we will be happy; we will be happy whether we are poor, and passing through tribulation pertaining to the body or not, we will be cheerful and happy.
I do greatly rejoice; and when I reflect upon the scenes before me, and upon what He will do, so far as He has revealed it in the revelations, and so far as the Spirit of truth opens the visions of our minds to contemplate these things; I say, when I reflect upon these things, I do not know where to find language to express my feelings--to express the joy and gratitude of my heart for these glorious benefits and gifts bestowed upon the people of God in these last days! O how happy I feel that I have the privilege of being among this people. Nearly twenty-five years, as I have stated, have rolled over my head since I had the privilege of going into the waters of baptism, and being immersed for the remission of my sins; I am still one with this people, and in your midst; and I rejoice--my soul is glad, and I feel to cry, Hosannah to God and the Lamb, who has been so kind and so merciful to me.
May the God of heaven bless you all, and His spirit be poured out upon you, that your hearts may be enlightened; and may He continually multiply the blessings of heaven and earth upon you, is the prayer of your humble servant in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
PREACHING AND TESTIMONY--GATHERING ISRAEL--THE BLOOD OF ISRAEL AND THE GENTILES--THE SCIENCE OF LIFE.
A Discourse by President Brigham Young, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 8, 1855.
It is nearly time to draw our meeting to a close, and I think we had better adjourn our Conference to the sixth of next October, as the business now necessary to be done is accomplished; and I find that we are very much crowded in this Tabernacle, and on this account the congregation is rather uncomfortable.
There has been much said, though for one I can say that we have not preached to the assembled thousands one fourth part as much as we could have wished. But we have been privileged to meet from distant points, and see each other, and hear, learn, and receive spiritual strength.
A few of the brethren have spoken, but there has not been a lengthy discourse delivered since we have been together; and if we were to continue in Conference a whole week, we could give opportunity to but comparatively few of the Elders who would like to speak, even though we allotted only fifteen, twenty, thirty, forty, or forty-five minutes to each speaker.
I realize that the hearts of many are full, and they would like to rise up and testify, and say that they believe the Book of Mormon, and that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, just as well as the few who have spoken. You are aware that you have this privilege in your several Wards, and any of the Elders of Israel who wish to bear their testimony to the truth of the Gospel, and have not had the privilege in this Conference, can go to the Ward meetings and rise up and bear testimony of the truth, and exhort the brethren. And if you have a word of counsel, or a word of doctrine, give it to the people, and do not be backward, but improve every opportunity that is presented for you to expand your minds.
A man who wishes to receive light and knowledge, to increase in the faith of the Holy Gospel, and to grow in the knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ, will find that when he imparts knowledge to others he will also grow and increase. Be not miserly in your feelings, but get knowledge and understanding by freely imparting it to others, and be not like a man who selfishly hoards his gold; for that man will not thus increase upon the amount, but will become contracted in his views and feelings. So the man who will not impart freely of the knowledge he has received, will become so contracted in his mind that he cannot receive truth when it is presented to him. Wherever you see an opportunity to do good, do it, for that is the way to increase and grow in the knowledge of the truth.
I expect the brethren who have been selected to go and preach the Gospel will meet this evening in the Seventies' Hall, and the Twelve will meet with them, and the missionaries will there receive some instructions. I will give them one item of instruction now. I wish each man, who does not feel willing to seek unto the Lord his God, with all his heart, for preparation to magnify his mission and calling, but declines in his feelings to walk up to his duty in spirit, and is not anxious to cleave to righteousness and forsake iniquity, to keep away from the Hall this evening; or, if such a one comes there, let him ask us at once to be excused, and we will excuse him. We do not wish a man to enter on a mission, unless his soul is in it. Some of the brethren will say--"I do not know whether my feelings are upon my mission, or not, but I will do the best I can." That is all we ask of you. I have known some of the Elders, when they thought they would be called out to preach, keep away from meeting lest they should be called upon, for they feel their littleness, their nothingness, their inability to rise up and preach to the people. They do not feel that they are anybody, and why should they expose their weaknesses? I have noticed one thing in regard to this--quite as many of these men become giants in the cause of truth, as there is of any other class; for when they get away they begin to lean on the Lord, and to seek unto Him, and feeling their weaknesses, they ask Him to give them wisdom to speak to the people as occasion may require. Others can rise up here and preach a flaming discourse, insomuch that you would think they were going to tear down the nations; but when they go out into the world they often accomplish but little.
You used to hear brother Joseph tell about this people being crowded into the little end of the horn, and if they kept straight ahead they were sure to come out at the big end. It is so with some Elders who go on missions; while many who go into the big end of the horn, and are so full of fancied intelligence, preaching, counsel, knowledge, and power, when they go out into the world, either have to turn around and come back, or be crowded out at the little end of the horn.
On the other hand I do not wish any of the brethren to be discouraged, for if you feel that you cannot say a single word, no matter, if you will only be faithful to your God and to your religion, and be humble, and cleave unto righteousness, and forsake iniquity and sin, the Lord will guide you and give you words in due season.
Recollect that we are now calling upon the Elders to go and gather up Israel; this is the mission that is given to us. It was the first mission given to the Elders in the days of Joseph. The set time is come for God to gather Israel, and for His work to commence upon the face of the whole earth, and the Elders who have arisen in this Church and Kingdom are actually of Israel. Take the Elders who are now in this house, and you can scarcely find one out of a hundred but what is of the house of Israel. It has been remarked that the Gentiles have been cut off, and I doubt whether another Gentile ever comes into this Church.
Will we go to the Gentile nations to preach the Gospel? Yes, and gather out the Israelites, wherever they are mixed among the nations of the earth. What part or portion of them? The same part or portion that redeemed the house of Jacob, and saved them from perishing with famine in Egypt. When Jacob blessed the two sons of Joseph, "guiding his hands wittingly," he placed his right hand upon Ephraim, "and he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads," etc. Joseph was about to remove the old man's hands, and bringing his right hand upon the head of the oldest boy, saying--"Not so, my father; for this is the first born; put thy right hand upon his head. And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations." Ephraim has become mixed with all the nations of the earth, and it is Ephraim that is gathering together.
It is Ephraim that I have been searching for all the days of my preaching, and that is the blood which ran in my veins when I embraced the Gospel. If there are any of the other tribes of Israel mixed with the Gentiles we are also searching for them. Though the Gentiles are cut off, do not suppose that we are not going to preach the Gospel among the Gentile nations, for they are mingled with the house of Israel, and when we send to the nations we do not seek for the Gentiles, because they are disobedient and rebellious. We want the blood of Jacob, and that of his father Isaac and Abraham, which runs in the veins of the people. There is a particle of it here, and another there, blessing the nations as predicted.
Take a family of ten children, for instance, and you may find nine of them purely of the Gentile stock, and one son or one daughter in that family who is purely of the Blood of Ephraim. It was in the veins of the father or mother, and was reproduced in the son or daughter, while all the rest of the family are Gentiles. You may think that is singular, but it is true. It is the house of Israel we are after, and we care not whether they come from the east, the west, the north, or the south; from China, Russia, England, California, North or South America, or some other locality; and it is the very lad on whom father Jacob laid his hands, that will save the house of Israel. The Book of Mormon came to Ephraim, for Joseph Smith was a pure Ephraimite, and the Book of Mormon was revealed to him, and while he lived he made it his business to search for those who believed the Gospel.
Again, if a pure Gentile firmly believes the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and yields obedience to it, in such a case I will give you the words of the Prophet Joseph--"When the Lord pours out the Holy Ghost upon that individual he will have spasms, and you would think that he was going into fits."
Joseph said that the Gentile blood was actually cleansed out of their veins, and the blood of Jacob made to circulate in them; and the revolution and change in the system were so great that it caused the beholder to think they were going into fits.
If any of the Gentiles will believe, we will lay our hands upon them that they may receive the Holy Ghost, and the Lord will make them of the house of Israel. They will be broken off from the wild olive tree, and be grafted into the good and tame olive tree, and will partake of its sap and fatness. If you take a bud and inoculate it into another tree it ceases to receive nourishment from its original stock; it must, however, receive nourishment, or it will die. Where must it receive its nourishment from? From the tree into which it has been introduced; it is supported by it, and becomes incorporated with it.
It is so with the House of Israel and the Gentile nations; if the Gentiles are grafted into the good olive tree they will partake of its root and fatness.
You understand who we are; we are of the House of Israel, of the royal seed, of the royal blood.
There are many subjects upon which I wish to speak, but there is not time now, though in regard to teachings pertaining to our temporal organization, I will take the liberty of saying a few words. Do not some of you have to send for doctors to draw your teeth, and lie night after night with a bag of hot ashes, or hot salt, on your faces, and say, "O dear, what a tooth ache I have got?" When your children wake up in the night, crying on account of a pain in their heads, do not some of you go to the doctors, to see what they can do for the little sufferers? Some of your children are afflicted with humors in the head, and blotches upon the body, and other ailments; and some of you have pains in various parts of your bodies.
The fathers and mothers have laid the foundation for many of these diseases, from generation to generation, until the people are reduced to their present condition. True, some live to from fifty to ninety years of age, but it is an unusual circumstance to see a man an hundred years old, or a woman ninety. The people have laid the foundation of short life through their diet, their rest, their labor, and their doing this, that, and the other in a wrong manner, with improper motives, and at improper times. I would be glad to instruct the people on these points, if they would hearken to me. I would be glad to tell mothers how to lay the foundation of health in their children, that they may be delivered from the diseases with which I am afflicted, and have been from my youth up.
Suppose I happen to say "Come, wife, let us have a good dinner to-day; "what does she get? Pork and beef boiled, stewed, roasted, and fried, potatoes, onions, cabbage, and turnips, custard, eggs, pies of all kinds, cheese, and sweet-meats. Now grant that I and my wife sit down and overload our stomachs, until we feel the deleterious effects of it from the crowns of our heads to the soles of our feet, the whole system is disturbed in its operations, and is ready to receive and impart disease. A child begotten under such a condition of the systems of its parents, is liable to be born with a tabernacle subject to a life of pain and distress.
Will all the women hearken to this plain statement? No, you might as well talk to the wild geese that fly over us.
Again, a little hot tea, coffee, or sling, is generally given to a babe as soon as it comes into the world, to quiet the nerves, and make it sleep better; and I have seen my own wives almost whip their little ones to make them drink liquor. When I happen to see them, I say, "Stop that, that is something you may very well dispense with; do not put a drop of liquor into that child's mouth."
Some mothers, when bearing children, long for tea and coffee, or for brandy and other strong drinks, and if they give way to that influence the next time they will want more, and the next still more, and thus lay the foundation for drunkenness in their offspring. An appetite is engendered, bred, and born in the child, and it is a miracle if it does not grow up a confirmed drunkard.
Now will you, my sisters who are before me, hearken to good, sound common sense and reason? Will you commence now, and lay the foundation for a healthy posterity? Will you say, "I am determined not to desire this thing, or that, which will be injurious, but I will pray, and ask my Father in heaven for grace according to my day, that I may not desire that which will lay the foundation of ruin to my offspring, and to my posterity for generations?" Or will you say, "Cannot I have a little tea, or a little whisky?"
The satisfying of these desires lays the foundation of sickness, disease, and short life. But if any one really desires a particular kind of food, or drink, and feels as though she could not do without it, let it be obtained, if possible; though it is far better to have faith to overcome such desires.
It is for us to stop the tide of physical degeneracy--to lay the foundation for a return to the position from which the human family has fallen. We have that privilege, by keeping ourselves pure. If we take the right course, our children will live longer than we shall, and their children will surpass their fathers, and have longer life, and so on, till they obtain to the age of those who lived in the early period of the world. The Prophet, speaking of the Saints in the last days, said, "For as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands." Still, in the present short period of life some say that "this is a miserable world, I do not care how soon I get through." Well go and destroy yourselves, if you choose, you have all the opportunity that you can desire, there is plenty of arsenic, calomel, and other means, within your reach. But I would not give a cent for such persons; I do not delight in such characters, and I do not believe that the Lord delights in people who wish to die before they have accomplished the work that He designed for them to do. For a person to be willing to die is but a small part of the duties pertaining to the Gospel of salvation and the Gift of eternal life. We ought to prepare ourselves to live in the flesh, and overcome every sin, to live to the glory of God, to build up His kingdom, and to bring forth righteousness, salvation, and deliverance to the house of Israel, until the devil and his associates are driven from the earth, and he and his clan are bound and thrust down to hell, and a seal put upon them. Latter-day Saints who live merely to get ready to die are not worth much; rather get ready to live, and be prepared to live to the glory of your Father in heaven, and to do the work He has given you to do. That is our duty, and then we shall be ready to receive our blessings.
I do not wish to occupy any more time now, but if we had the time, as we shall have, and a house to hold all who wish to assemble, I am ready to come here every day, for I have nothing to do but to do good. At this time some may say, "My wheat is not all sown." That does not affect my feelings. I will tell you an item of my experience with regard to raising grain. The last year we staid in Nauvoo, I planted from ten to twelve acres of corn, and I never saw one day, from the time it was planted until it was harvested, in which to spend an hour amongst it. My teams were wanted at the Temple, and, said I, "Let the corn go." If they had the teams ready to attend to the corn, the word was, "Go to the Temple," and I do not suppose there was a greater crop of corn raised in all Hancock County. I said to the brethren who plowed and planted the land, "Paul plants and Apollos waters, and if God does not give the increase I can do without it."
I have given the sisters a few words of advice, and wish the brethren to pay particular attention to what brother George A. Smith said this forenoon. If the "old fogies" take a little tobacco, a little whisky, or a little tea and coffee, we wish you boys to let it alone, and let those have it who have long been accustomed to its use. It is far better for these my brethren, who are young and healthy, to avoid every injurious habit. There are a great many boys here who are in the habit of chewing tobacco, they should stop it, and take no more, they are better without it. Some may turn round and say, "Father, do you think so?" Yes, let the old folks have it, but you young, smart gentlemen, let it alone.
I bless you all, and feel to pray for you, and desire you to pray for me; and I believe that you do, as fervently as I could ask.
We have had a good Conference, though it has been a short one to me, and perhaps we may have a long meeting some of these days, and enjoy ourselves to the full extent of our understandings and patience.
FAITH AND WORKS.
A Discourse by Elder J. M. Grant, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, March 11, 1855.
I am thankful for the blessings that the Lord has vouchsafed to bestow upon His people. If I do not at all times in public express my gratitude to our heavenly Father, yet I feel grateful and thankful for all His favors, whether I utter it or not. I have reason to believe that all the people feel the same, that is, all who feel right, all the Saints, all who live up to the religion they profess.
We have received many testimonies of the goodness of God, our heavenly Father, in sickness and in health; He has heard our prayers, and supplied our wants; in distress He has administered unto us consolation; and when the light of His Spirit is upon us we comprehend clearly the dealings of the Lord, but when that Spirit is absent from us we do not so clearly comprehend His mercies and blessings bestowed upon us individually, and as a people. I presume that in the order of the providences of God He has considered it necessary, at times, to leave His children to themselves, without the aid of any special influence of the Holy Spirit, that they may learn to comprehend and appreciate it when bestowed upon them.
For instance, the blessings you enjoy every day for a week, a month, or a year, you do not prize so highly as you do the blessings you receive more seldom. Deprive a man of any common article of food, even the bread you now enjoy, keep it from him for a week, for a month, or for a year, and when he again obtains it he will appreciate it very much. It is measurably so with the Spirit of the Lord; we do not enjoy it at all times, we do not receive it under all the circumstances of life, the same as we do under some special condition that we may be placed in, where we particularly need the Spirit of the Lord to assist us.
We pray for many things; and I have heard some people pray in a manner that they would be very sorry, in their sober moments, if the Lord should actually answer their prayers. If the prayers of the people were written down, so that they could read and reflect upon them, I have no doubt but what they would wish to have a new edition. I have heard people pray for the Lord to do this and that; indeed, I have heard them pray for Him to do a thousand things that they themselves would not attempt to do; they would consider it degrading to do them; they would actually consider it sinful to endeavor to accomplish what they will petition the Almighty to perform for them.
A man's works should agree with his faith; if he has faith to sustain his words, if he has faith to sustain his deeds, his works should correspond with his faith. I must be right in my faith, to be right in my works. If the tree is bitter, the fruit will also be bitter; or in other words, the tree is known by its fruits, and faith by its works. If a man's works are good, his faith is also good; if his works are bad, we infer that his faith is bad also, and very just inferences too. All men should be judged by their works; this is a correct criterion to judge every person by. Many of the Latter-day Saints have correct faith and correct works, while some profess to have correct faith, but exhibit by their works that their faith is actually not good. How can I tell whether your faith is good or not? I can only judge of it by your works.
If your works are good and in accordance with the law of God, with the Book of Mormon, with the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and with the rules of right, I have a right to infer that your faith has produced the works I behold; that the tree, or stem, if you will allow me the expression, from which they grew, is a good one. But when we see a man's works vary with sometimes a little good to-day and to-morrow, and perhaps the third day he performs evil, to believe that man is correct in his faith, in every sense of the word, I cannot.
We speak of faith as the first principle of our religion. If it is the first principle, other principles grow out of it. We cannot create principle, we can only discover it. If you were to discover a new principle, you would err in saying that you had created a principle, that you had brought one into existence. Principle eternally exists, and man cannot create it. If you discover any law in mathematics, in astronomy, or any principle or law connected with the sciences, this is no proof that you have brought into existence a new law, or process of law, for the principle existed before you made the discovery.
We have the faculty to make discoveries, we have the faculty to discover, we have the faculty to learn and understand the first principles of the doctrines of Christ. Faith, being the first principle of our religion, is established in the mind by hearing, it is established in the mind by evidence and by testimony.
I cannot believe everything that my neighbor may wish me to believe, I cannot always believe to please my neighbor, while I have no evidence perhaps to believe as he does. I have no testimony to receive what he has received, and I reject it. My neighbor is then offended, and calls upon me to have faith, to believe as he does. If he would only produce sufficient evidence and testimony for me to predicate my faith upon, to produce in me confidence, or establish in my mind faith, then I could believe as he does. Faith then comes by hearing testimony, or by testimony bring produced, or brought before the mind.
The testimony you have received of the religion you profess is just as different as the religion you profess is different from any other religion. The Methodist, for example, founds his religion upon the bind of testimony he receives; he is taught by the presiding Elder, the circuit rider, the local preacher, the class leader, the exhorter, or some of the lay members, certain principles, or in other words, testimony is produced to convince him that such and such principles are right, and his belief is based upon the testimony that he is capable of receiving and appreciating. Then faith corresponds more or less with their discipline, or articles of faith they believe there is but one God infinite, eternal, from everlasting to everlasting, without body, parts, or passions. Their testimony for that belief is only to be found in their discipline and traditions, and has been handed down from father to son, from their grandmother the Church of Rome to their mother the Church of England; they actually believe it, write it, and publish it abroad.
Their notions of sprinkling, pouring, and other works we might mention, correspond with their belief. If they believed it right for a man to be invariably immersed, they would teach him so; if they believed it right for a man to be baptized only by pouring, they would teach him so; if they believed it right for a man to be sprinkled to answer the requirements of heaven, they would teach him so. Hence you discover that their works would correspond with their faith; if they had no faith, they could not believe either in immersion, sprinkling, or pouring. If a believer in immersion, he will practise it, his works will correspond with his faith, and he will go forth and be immersed. How do you know he believes in baptism by immersion? By his works. What evidence have you that that person believes in immersion? "Why," says my brother, "I was present when he was immersed; I heard him tell the Elder, or the Priest, that he required immersion at his hands, and he went forth and backed up his faith in it by his works." This would be correct reasoning. "But," says one, "I believe in having water poured upon my head." "How do you know he believes this?" "I was present, and heard him require the Priest or Elder, to pour water upon him, and the Priest complied with his wishes, and his works proved to me that he believed in pouring."
Another one says to the Priest, "I wish you to sprinkle me, I require this because I believe that sprinkling is the best mode." What evidence have you that this man believes in sprinkling? His works prove it. The simple fact that you were present and saw him sprinkled, or heard him request the administration of the rite, convinces you that he had a certain kind or species of faith. Do all people have one faith? No, and their works are as varied as their faith. If there are diverse kinds of faith, there must be diverse kinds of works.
If there is but one faith, there can be but one mode of baptism. Dr. Clark asserts positively that the Colossians were buried with Christ in baptism, that is, they were actually immersed. He says the Greek Testament reads that they were immersed, plunged, buried, that they were covered up. How do you know anything about the Colossians? What process of reasoning would you pursue, to lead you to the conclusion that the Colossians believed in immersion as the only mode? that they were actually buried in water? Again, if you inquire whether the Corinthians were sprinkled, how would you know their faith? Says one, "I would know it by their works, for I know that their works would correspond with their faith. And if the Ephesians had the ordinance administered by pouring, I should know it by their works." What does the Bible tell you? That there is one faith, one Lord, and one baptism.
If the Catholics had the same faith that the Colossians had, could they pour or sprinkle? Certainly not. If you say that one portion of the people of God are poured, another portion sprinkled, and another immersed, you introduce schism and false doctrine, and then different works follow. As quick as you have the Colossians immersed, the Corinthians poured, and the Ephesians sprinkled, you introduce the doing of three kinds of labor. But if there is one faith, and they all had the right kind of faith, if they had all attained to the like precious faith delivered to the Saints, and one portion was immersed, then the balance were immersed also. If the fact can be established that one portion of the Christian Church was immersed, it will establish the fact, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that all the rest were administered to in the same way. The people of God are under the necessity of having like precious faith, and their works therefore would also have to agree. If Dr. Clark was correct, and I have no reason to dispute the learned doctor, that the Colossians were immersed, the balance of the people of God in all the ancient Church were also immersed. If they had but the one faith, it is impossible to introduce pouring and sprinkling. If you introduce pouring, then they had the pouring faith; if sprinkling, the sprinkling faith. But if you prove that one portion was immersed, you prove that they had the like precious faith, and the rest must of necessity be immersed. This is the way I reason upon the subject.
Again, if they were immersed, they were confirmed by the laying on of hands, as you learn by the same Scripture. If the ancient Saints believed it necessary to lay on hands, and the Latter-day Saints should believe it to be unnecessary to lay on hands, how could you make your faith agree with theirs? How could you introduce a new doctrine and argument, and reconcile your faith with theirs? They actually believed in the laying on of hands in confirmation for the reception of the Holy Ghost.
The Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, Church of England, all believe that was the practice of the ancient Saints. All who believe in the Bible will agree that that was the faith of the ancients as exhibited in their works; therefore if any of the modern Christians reject it, we have a right to assert that their faith is known by their works. We have a right to say that their faith agrees not with that of the ancients. But my faith agrees with that of the ancients. I believe and practise the very works which they practised. I believe in baptism for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and, if any are sick among you, in sending for the Elders of the Church, in anointing the sick with oil, and in praying for them, that they may be healed.
Now I want to dwell a little upon this point. I do not know but some use the ordinances of God too commonly, and on too slight occasions. Some, if they get a sliver in their finger, will call for the laying on of hands and for prayer to cure the wound; or if they get a little gravel or dust in their eye, they will want you to lay hands on them to eradicate it; and so of other little complaints for which we already have simple and known remedies. I do not wish to teach this, but I wish to teach you the doctrine of the Bible. "Is any sick among you? let him call for the Elders of the Church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." This is the doctrine of the Bible, mark the words. If any of the Apostles are sick, let them send for some of the rest of the Apostles, and let their brethren Apostles administer to them, and they shall be healed; the Bible does not read thus. It does not read that only the renowned in the Church shall reap the benefits of this institution, but it says, "Is any sick among you?" &c. Suppose God has a true Church upon the earth in this age, what mode would that Church adopt in case any were sick? Says one, "If they had the same faith as the ancients, they would perform the same works." How shall we ascertain whether the Latter-day Saints have the like precious faith with the Apostles? You know that the Apostles said they had the like precious faith. How are we to ascertain that we have it? If any are sick among you, you will send for the Elders of the Church, and let them anoint you with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith shall save the sick.
You see at once that it is necessary for your works to correspond, and for you to send for the Elders of the Church. Do you see this practised among the Latter-day Saints? Some of them must first try the physician, have the head shaved, take a dose of calomel and gamboge, have a blister plaster on the back of the neck, and another all over the bowels, besides one on each hip--in short, they must have six or eight large blister plasters on them at once. After trying all this, and running up a bill with a physician of from six to six hundred dollars, they then send for the Elders. When James is about dead, having had two quarts of blood taken from him on Saturday, and another on Monday, and when the life is nearly drawn out of the poor fellow by physicing and bleeding, why then they send for the Elders, and ask them to pray for him. When a man or woman sends for me after taking such a course, I feel insulted, if I do not act so. I go to the house perfectly good natured apparently, and administer, but there is a frown of indignation within me. I feel that they have insulted the Priesthood, trampled upon the order of the house of God, and treated lightly His holy ordinances. I am not anxious to exercise faith for such persons, for I think that they are fools, and let them die the fool's death.
If the Saints of God actually have the faith of the ancients, let them practise the doctrine in their works. A man will tell me that he is a "Mormon," that he believes in the faith of the ancients, when at the same time he practises everything else but their religion. My rule is to practise our religion. If I want a drink of catnip tea, or of composition, or of lobelia, it is all right, but I will first practise my religion. You know that it is hardly allowable in Utah to drink any more than five gallons of lobelia at once, for the Assembly of Deseret once had the matter under consideration.
I wish to see the Saints practise their religion, and carry it out, and if they cannot live by their religion, then die by it. That is the doctrine. I want my religion if I am going to die. Most certainly that is the time I would not like to lay it by, for it would be unwise to do that, since that is the very time that one needs it the most, and is the time when he should be immersed in it. I want to see the Saints actually show by their works that they have the faith of the ancients.
When the Elders go forth to preach, and people are healed by the laying on of hands, some have said, "We cannot expect the sick to be healed in Zion; we cannot expect to see miracles when we are gathered to Zion." That is the very place for the sick to be healed, and the place where the people of God should exercise the most faith, and be the most diligent in keeping the ordinances of the Lord's house perfectly. You have only heard the theory taught abroad, but you have now come home to practise what you have been taught in other lands.
If any are sick among you, let them send for the Elders of the Church to pray for them, and to lay their hands upon them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith shall save the sick. People neglect to anoint with oil when they should and might use it. I have seen the Elders try to cast out devils, and to accomplish it they have fasted, and prayed, and laid on hands, and rebuked the devil, but he would not go out. I have then seen them bring consecrated oil, and anoint the person possessed of the devil, and the devil went out forthwith. That taught me a good lesson--that God Almighty, when He speaks, means what He says; and if a man's works are right, his faith will be right; and if his faith is wrong, his works are wrong. When a man whose faith is right goes forth to administer to the sick, he will anoint with oil, as well as lay on his hands and pray. Unless you anoint with oil, your prayers will not rise higher than the fog, and you know that it seldom rises much higher than the tops of the mountains.
If I am sick, and send for an administrator, I want him to fulfil every word of the Lord; and if there is any body there you don't like when you come to me, invite them out of the door. When devils are in the house, and you don't like them, cast them out, but be sure to administer the ordinances right. When an Elder comes to administer to the sick, and is afraid of greasing his fingers, or of dropping a little oil on his vest or pants, and says, "O never mind the oil, there is no virtue in the olive oil; you might as well drink it as anoint with it; besides, I might grease my gloves; I will dispense with it," I want such a man to walk off. If I was sick, and he came to me in that manner, I should say, "You are a poor, miserable hypocrite." That is the way I should feel and talk. Let a man, when he has the right kind of faith, practise the works thereof; and when God says, "Anoint with oil," anoint; I don't care if it runs down your beard as it ran down Aaron's, it will not hurt you. When a man complies with every requisition of heaven, his works and his faith are right. He offers up prayer for the sick, he anoints with oil, and lays on his hands. When his works are right they will correspond with his faith, and men and women will be healed.
This is just as sure as the law of mathematics; I never saw it fail, and it never will fail; I tell you this in the name of the Lord God of Israel. The grand difficulty is, as brother Kimball says, people play with these things as a cat does with a mouse until it is dead; and so it will be with the ordinances of God when a part of them only are performed and a part omitted, for in this way the channel of the Lord's blessings is stopped up. The Saints who are sick need not expect that they are going to be healthy when only half of the ordinance is administered to them. If a man wishes to be healed, he must be administered to lawfully in that way God has appointed, and live his religion.
A great many people partake of the Sacrament, and at the same time are thinking, "How many teams can I get to-morrow to haul stone? I wonder if that sister has a bonnet like mine, or if I can get one like hers? I wonder if it is going to be a good day to- morrow, or whether it will rain or snow?" &c. You can sit in this stand and read such thoughts in their faces. When a sick person has sent in a request for the prayers of this congregation, many are permitting their thoughts to wander all over creation. Do we not see this right here? Yes, and a man of God feels indignant at it. No matter who is called upon to pray, all the assembly should unite in one; every person in the congregation who have an interest at the throne of grace should engage in prayer, and raise their hearts, as the heart of one man, to the Almighty, for the blessings desired, and in offering thanks for the blessings enjoyed.
We talk about being one; now if our faith is right, let our works correspond. If you have faith to pray, and prayer is offered up in the stand, pray too; and if you cannot confine your thoughts in any other way, mentally repeat the prayer of the one who is praying aloud, word for word, and let every Saint of God pray when the hour of prayer comes. When prayer is offered up in this manner to the God of high heaven for the sick and afflicted, you will find that the sick will be healed, for the prayers of the people of God ascend as incense before Him, and He has decreed that He will answer their prayers because they are united. When a sick person sends a request here for the benefit of our prayers, it is not sent that one man alone may pray for that person, but that the prayers of the assembled Saints, individually and collectively, may be offered up for that person. Hence every one in the Tabernacle of the righteous should lift up his voice and pray for that sick person, it is your duty to do it. And when you partake of the Sacrament, you should discern the Lord's body, and believe that, by the virtue of his sufferings, blood, and death, you are redeemed. You should realize that it is no little, trifling ordinance, but was instituted by the great God for the benefit of His people, and to commemorate and perpetuate the sufferings and death of His Son.
I wish to call upon you to be faithful, to have the right kind of faith, and to exhibit it by your works. What is the testimony of the Latter-day Saints? Our religion is as different from other people's religion as our testimony is different from theirs. When Joseph Smith bore testimony, he told the people that an angel from high heaven had spoken to him, that he had been ordained by authority from Jesus Christ, and sent forth to preach the Gospel. Did you ever hear the Methodists bear such a testimony? If not, how can you expect them to have such faith as the man who believes the testimony of Joseph Smith? The Methodists have no such testimony, only as they have it from the Latter-day Saints. Joseph also said that he had seen the dark regions of Hades; did you ever hear a Methodist bear that testimony? No. Here are Elders of Israel who have seen company after company of angels, who have seen the sick healed, the ears of the deaf unstopped, the tongue of the dumb loosed, and the eyes of the blind opened. You will hear them testify that they have seen the glory of God; and that by the spirit of prophecy, they have seen war, pestilence, and famine coming upon the earth. The Methodists do not pretend to have such testimony, and of course have not such faith. You may go to any sect you please upon the earth, and their faith corresponds with their testimony, more or less.
The Latter-day Saints have testimony, and faith comes to them by hearing the word of God, but it comes to others by hearing the words of men.
We have testimony that Christ lives, and sits on the right hand of God, that angels have administered to the children of men on earth, and that our God hears and answers our prayers. Our faith is different and our testimony is different, from the rest of the professing world, and, in order to have them agree with us, they have to hear and receive the same testimony, the same doctrine, and the same weight of argument that we have, for faith comes by hearing the word of God. The people of God in these last days differ from other sects of religionists. How can it be otherwise, when our testimony is so different, when the first proclamation we heard was so different, when the restoration of the Book of Mormon, its translation by the use of the Urim and Thummim, the gifts and blessings of the Holy Ghost, the administration of angels, and every thing connected with our religion, are so different from that to which the world have been accustomed? They believe that calomel will heal the sick--we believe not, but that the anointing with oil and laying on of hands will; and we practise accordingly.
It is no wonder that the Latter-day Saints believe differently from other folks, for their works are different, and their testimony is different. We believe in gathering together; the Lord God has spoken to us from the heavens and commanded us to gather. They do not believe in gathering to where the Almighty can talk to them; they do not even pray for the Lord to send an angel to speak to them. The Latter-day Saints try to live their religion, that they may converse with angels, receive the administration of holy messengers from the throne of God, be sanctified in their spirits, affections, and all their desires, that the Holy Ghost may rest upon them, and their hearts be filled therewith, and become competent to bear the presence of angels.
May the Lord bless you, and wake you up upon these points of doctrine, that your faith and works may ever correspond, and that your blessings be equal with those of the ancient people of God, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
DEPENDENCE ON THE LORD--COAL AND IRON WORKS--FAMILY EXCURSIONS.
An Address by President Brigham Young, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, May 27, 1855.