Opening…

Preface

BRIGHAM YOUNG, second President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and first Governor of Utah, was the founder and chief builder of the Great Intermountain West of the United States of America. He is recognized as one of the foremost colonizers and empire builders of all time. His unsurpassed methods of conquering for human use the Great American Desert, have been adopted to some degree by all who, since his day, have been engaged in the reclamation and settlement of unoccupied lands, especially under a low rainfall. Statesmen, scholars and business men have acclaimed the leadership, organizing power and sound philosophy which brought social and economic happiness to the people who were led into the wilderness by Brigham Young. He not only brought contentment to the people, gathered from many lands, but he guided the Church over which he presided, until, at his death, it was larger in numbers and more firmly established than ever before.

The tremendous world significance of the labors of Brigham Young, and the universal applicability of his methods, under modern conditions, make it certain that the work he accomplished was not due, primarily, to the gigantic personality of the man. Rather, the success achieved must have been due to the possession of a life philosophy of sufficient depth and extent to meet varying human needs. Another man, of less dominant personality, armed with the same principles, would have won success. As he, himself, would say, it was the possession of the Gospel of Life and Salvation that enabled him and his associates to do the work so well. In fact, Brigham Young was first a spiritual teacher and secondly a material leader. The religion that he professed made him the man that he became; its principles were used in guiding the people in all their affairs.

Books enough to fill a library have been written about the history, character and accomplishments of Brigham Young. Few of these books attempt to analyze the system of doctrine and practice that brought unbounded success to the Latter-day Saints. Many display such extreme religious partisanship that even the sympathetic reader can place no reliance upon their statements. Something harsher might be said about the large number of books written about Brigham Young and his times that manifestly aim to secure popularity by appealing to the sensational and the lurid, at the expense of truth. Even recently, when the years have given perspective, some writers have set up hypotheses concerning Brigham Young, and have proceeded to argue the case--as if that were history! It is amazing that intelligent people, knowing the high order of accomplishments of the Latter-day Saints, give credence to the weird and crude stories, appealing to the baser emotions of mankind, which fill the pages of anti-"Mormon" literature.

In this book Brigham Young is allowed to speak for himself. Excerpts have been made from his many discourses, and these have been arranged to show the coherent system of faith which he continuously taught his people and by which he was enabled to win success for his followers. The philosophy thus set forth is clear and unmistakable in its purpose. It reveals Brigham Young as a man who applied the simple principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the everyday affairs of men; and who proved the efficacy, in common life, among common men, of the Gospel of the Son of God.

This book was made possible because Brigham Young secured stenographic reports of his addresses. As he traveled among the people, reporters accompanied him. All that he said was recorded. Practically all of these discourses (from December 16, 1851 to August 19, 1877) were published in the Journal of Discourses, which was widely distributed. The public utterances of few great historical figures have been so faithfully and fully preserved. Clearly, this mass of material, covering nearly thirty years of incessant public speaking could not be presented with any hope of serving the general reader, save in the form of selections of essential doctrines.

The discourses, from which this volume has been culled, were spoken extemporaneously. The state papers of Governor Brigham Young, and the epistles signed by him and his counselors in the Presidency of the Church, have not been used in this collection. The excerpts here presented came from his lips under the inspiration, at the moment, of the Power that guided his life. The corrections for the printer, as shown by existing manuscripts, were few and of minor consequence. The discourses are a remarkable self-revelation of the character and moving impulses of a man who accomplished huge tasks for his generation. It is marvelous that the enemies of Brigham Young, with this wealth of material before them, have found so little to use to his disadvantage. But, a dishonest or insincere man would not have had his public utterances reported and published all over the world. The consistency of the views presented, from the first to the last discourse, would be astounding, were it not for the fact that he clung constantly for interpretation to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as he had been taught it by the Prophet Joseph Smith. His devotion to his teacher and predecessor, the Prophet, is tenderly beautiful.

The school education of Brigham Young was very limited, but his discourses show a wide knowledge of men and affairs and an excellent power to use the English language clearly and forcefully. Often, his simple eloquence rises to great heights. Those who heard him speak have declared that they were held in tense attention, however long the address might be. His vivid imagination, dramatic power and unquestioned sincerity made him a natural orator. He seldom confined himself to one subject in his discourses. The needs of the day were the themes about which he wound his teachings.

No liberties have been taken, in this book, with the words of Brigham Young. In a few instances, errors in language or spelling, which should have been caught by the printer, have been corrected. All distinct sentiments, as expressed in the discourses, are represented by one or more quotations, except such as refer to conditions now no longer existing. The excerpts are confined to the principles of the Gospel. The mass of historical and autobiographical detail could not be included without making this volume too large for popular use. As it is, severe pruning and elimination have been employed to enable the inclusion of the message of each of the 363 addresses in the Journal of Discourses, and the many others printed in the Deseret News, the Millennial Star and other periodicals. The many summaries of Brigham Young's discourses, appearing in the Deseret News have not been used. The excerpts contained in this volume are from verbatim reports. The figures at the end of each excerpt indicates the volume and page of the Journal of Discourses.

These discourses are Brigham Young's witness to the existence of God, the divine mission of Jesus the Christ, the restoration of the Gospel in its fulness by Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and the possibility of securing happiness here and hereafter by obedience to the requirements of the Gospel. This volume is but another testimony that the Lord continues to speak through his prophets.

PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION

The reception of this book far surpassed the hopes of the publishers. The first edition of fifteen thousand was soon exhausted. The second edition of ten thousand is the same as the first edition except for some minor letter corrections.

THE PUBLISHERS.

Feb. 15, 1926.

I. THE GOSPEL DEFINED

Composed of Eternal Laws--Embraces all Truth--Increasing Knowledge of Gospel--Holds Power of Priesthood--The Gospel of Life and Salvation--Offers Salvation to All--A Guide in Daily Life--A Fountain of Truth--We Need a Practical Religion--Temporal Labors are Necessary--We Need a Present Everyday Religion--We Must Learn to Support Ourselves

II. THE GODHEAD

Our Father in Heaven--Personality and Fatherhood of God--The Son of God--the Holy Ghost

III. THE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN GOD AND MAN

The Spirit of God--Revelation--Angels--Prayer

IV. PRE-EXISTENCE, THE PLAN OF SALVATION

Time--The Organized Universe--Man and Matter Eternal--Man the Offspring of God--The Spirit of Man--The Council in Heaven--The Plan of Salvation

V. FREE AGENCY

Definition of

VI. THE POWER OF EVIL

Lucifer--False Spirits--Priestcraft--Sin and Wickedness--Temptation--Apostasy

VII. THE LAW OF ETERNAL PROGRESSION

Object of Mortal Life--Man to Endure Forever--The Business of life--Prepare to Live--Eternal Increase--Blessings are Proportioned to our Capacity

VIII. THE DESTINY OF MAN

The Gift of Eternal Life--Eternal Increase--The Celestial World--Opposition to Death

IX. DISPENSATIONS OF THE GOSPEL

The Earth--Adam and Eve--Enoch and Moses--Jesus on Earth--The Apostasy--The Restoration--The Book of Mormon

X. THE LAST DAYS

Confusion of the Last Days--Ultimate Triumph of Righteousness--Return to Jackson County--Coming of Christ--The Millennium--Rapid Movements in the Last Days--Zion--The Land of Zion--The City of Zion--Purpose of Gathering--The Jews and Jerusalem--The Indians or Lamanites

XI. THE SCRIPTURES

The Bible--the Standard Church Works--The Use of the Scriptures

XII. THE PRIESTHOOD

The Priesthood--The First Presidency--The Apostle and Melchizedek Priesthood--The Bishop and the Aaronic Priesthood--Church Organization and Government

XIII. THE FIRST PRINCIPLES OF THE GOSPEL

Importance of the Principles of the Gospel--Need of Ordinances--Faith--Repentance--Baptism--The Gift of the Holy Ghost--Healing the Sick

XIV. THE SABBATH; MEETINGS; THE SACRAMENT

How to Spend the Sabbath Day--Worship on Every Day--Preaching and Listening in Meetings--Testimony Meetings--The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper

XV. TITHING; THE UNITED ORDER

The Law of Tithing--The Lord has Given All--People Not Compelled to Pay Tithing--Use of the Tithing--The United Order

XVI. THE WORD OF WISDOM

Moderation--The Word of Wisdom--Live Long--Eating for Health--Living Out-of-Doors--Exercise and Mental Vigor--Physiological Differences--Feeding Children--The Giving of the Word of Wisdom

XVII. THE FAMILY

Virtue--Marriage--Do Not Marry Unbelievers--Birth Control--The Husband--The Wife--Children--Family Life--Importance of Early Training--Influence of the Mother--Teach Children the Gospel--Parents Should Teach by Example--Guides for Child Training--Need of Parent Training

XVIII. SOME WOMANLY DUTIES

The Housewife--Woman's Fashions--Some Duties of the Relief Societies

XIX. OBEDIENCE

Counsel--Obedience--Effect of Obedience--Obedience and Free Agency----Effects of Disobedience

XX. GRATITUDE, HUMILITY, DEVOTION, LIBERALITY, HONESTY

Gratitude--Humility--Devotion to the Gospel--Give Freely--Be Honest--Honest in Labor--Consistency and Sincerity

XXI. HAPPINESS AND SOCIAL ENJOYMENTS

Saints Should be Happy--Social Amusements--Dancing--The Theater--Excursions

XXII. EDUCATION

Knowledge and Intelligence--A Religion of Improvement--Knowledge to be Sought--Continuous Education--Effects of Education--Educate Our Children--Establish Schools--What to Study--Religious Education--Science and Religion--the Body and the Mind--Studies in Sunday Schools

XXIII. SELF CONTROL

The Will of Man--Self-Control Necessary--Check your Words--Cease your Anger--Learn to Know Ourselves--Let us Mind our own Business

XXIV. OUR FELLOW-MEN

Love Each Other--Let us be Merciful--Show Charity--Establish Confidence--Avoid Contention--Do not Deal Judgment--Respect for Neighbors--Lady and Gentleman Defined--The Negro--The Generous Nature

XXV. UNITY AND CO-OPERATION

Be of One Mind and One Heart--Perfect Oneness will Save a People--Unity in God's Work, the Strength of Zion--Advantage of Temporal Unity--Unity Does not Mean Individual Uniformity--the Co-operative Movement

XXVI. THRIFT AND INDUSTRY

Faith and Works--Time Should be Spent Wisely--Labor Indispensable--Let Nothing go to Waste--We Must be a Self-sustaining People--The Elements of Wealth are Around Us--Agriculture--Manufacturing--Commerce--Capital and Labor--Build Good Houses and Beautiful Cities--Accumulate Property--Debt

XXVII. WEALTH

Wealth Belongs to the Lord--Uncertainty of Temporal Possessions--The Sin of Covetousness--True Riches--Gold is not Wealth--How to Become Wealthy--Wealth Must be Used--Wealth Brings Happiness Only When Used for the Gospel--Some Dangers of Wealth--The Poor

XXVIII. MISSIONARY WORK

The Gospel to be Preached to all Men--Help to Save Every Person--Words to Departing Missionaries--Advice to Missionaries in the Field--The Returned Missionary--The Gospel is Preached with Authority--The Spirit, not Logic or Debate, Makes Converts--Humility and Devotion, the Essentials--Preach only that which is Known--Hints to Teachers

XXIX. VISIONS, MYSTERIES AND MIRACLES

Visions of a Personal Matter--Leave Alone Mysteries--Providences of God, all Miracles--Miracles for Believers--Faith not Dependent on Miracles

XXX. TRIALS AND PERSECUTION

Trials are Necessary--Purpose of Persecution--Persecution May be Expected--Meet Trials Cheerfully--Cause of Persecution--Disobedience Causes Persecution--Result of Persecution--Cannot Overtake Falsehood--Danger of Persecuting the Saints--Persecution Comes from Efforts of Few

XXXI. POLITICAL GOVERNMENT

Theocratic Government--Republican Government--God and Governments--Fitness of Rulers--Labor and Politics--Saints and Politics--The Constitution of U. S. an Inspired Document--The Saints Will Yet Save the Constitution--Religious Liberty Should be Observed--Opposed to Corrupt Administrators of Law--The President of the U. S.--Political Parties--States' Rights--Forebodings of the Civil War--War--Woman Suffrage

XXXII. DEATH AND RESURRECTION

The Body Must Return to Mother Earth--Man Should Live out His Days--We Should Not Mourn for the Righteous Dead--Our Identity will be Preserved--Our Bodies will be Resurrected--Jesus, the First Fruits of the Resurrection--The Resurrected Body--Resurrection Necessary to Full Salvation

XXXIII. THE SPIRIT WORLD

All go to the Spirit World--Where is the Spirit World--Labors in the pet World--Life in the Spirit World

XXXIV. ETERNAL JUDGMENT

Judgment According to Works--Honesty in Action Will Temper Judgment--Hell Defined--The Second Death--Measure of Human Judgment

XXXV. SALVATION

Universal Salvation--The Way to Salvation--Salvation an Individual Work--Many Degrees of Salvation--Exaltation Proportioned to Capacity--The Celestial Kingdom

XXXVI. TEMPLES AND SALVATION FOR THE DEAD

Saints Always Commanded to Build Temples--Temples Indispensable for Higher Ordinances--Endowments Given in Temples--Vicarious Work for the Dead in Temples--Who Should Represent the Dead--Saviors on Mount Zion--Powers of Evil Opposed to Temple Building--The Salt Lake Temple--Address at the Laying of the Corner Stone of the Salt Lake Temple--St. George Temple

XXXVII. MAN'S SEARCH FOR TRUTH AND SALVATION

Man Desires Salvation--Humanity Loves Truth and Righteousness--Human Family Alike in Sentiments--A Variety of Human Gifts--Man's Powers are Limited--Man Must have Confidence in Himself--Man Always Dependent--We Must Fight Our Battles--How to Know Oneself--Our Good Character Must be Cherished--The Need of Leaders--Duty and Responsibility of Man

XXXVIII. TESTIMONY OF THE TRUTH

All Latter-day Saints May Know the Gospel is True--How a Witness of the Truth is Won--Why Some Men Reject the Gospel--Testimony Not Built Upon a Man--Joseph Smith a Witness of the Truth--A Duty to Listen to the Truth

XXXIX. THE CHURCH AND KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH

Israel--The Church and the Kingdom--An Object of the Church--The Kingdom of God to Develop Gradually--The Effect of the Kingdom of God--It Will Continue--The Business of Latter-day Saints--Individual Labor Required in the Kingdom of God--The Kingdom of God or Nothing

XL. SOME EFFECTS OF THE GOSPEL

The Nature of the Gospel--Some of the Effects of the Gospel--His Personal Joy in the Gospel--Blessings Continued Upon Good Works--Increasing Blessings--Personal Blessings Upon the People

XLI. JOSEPH SMITH THE PROPHET

Joseph Smith, a Prophet of God--Joseph Called and Directed by God--The Development of the Prophet--What Joseph Taught--Results of the Prophet's Labors--Persecutions of the Prophet--The Prophet Harassed by Law-suits--Joseph of Good Character--Why the Prophet was Killed--Joseph's Work in the Spirit World--Nature of the Prophet and His Family--The Twelve, the Successors of the Prophet--Some Sayings of the Prophet

XLII. THE SETTLEMENT IN THE WEST

The Journey Across the Plains--The Mormon Battalion--Settlement in the Great Salt Lake Valley

{1}

Discourses of Brigham Young

Chapter I

THE GOSPEL DEFINED

Composed of Eternal Laws--The Gospel of the Son of God that has been revealed is a plan or system of laws and ordinances, by strict obedience to which the people who inhabit this earth are assured that they may return again into the presence of the Father and the Son. 13:233 [A]

[Footnote A: The numbers at the end of each excerpt refer to the volume and page of the Journal of Discourses. Where the excerpt occurs thus, 13:233, it means Journal of Discourses, volume 13, page 233.]

The laws of the Gospel are neither more nor less than a few of the principles of eternity revealed to the people, by which they can return to heaven from whence they came. We delight in the heavenly law--in that law that will preserve us to all eternity. 8:208.

The laws and ordinances which the Lord has revealed in these latter days, are calculated to save all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve who have not sinned against the Holy Ghost, for all will be saved in a kingdom of glory, though it may not be in the celestial kingdom, for there are many mansions. 15:122. {2}

Our religion is nothing more nor less than the true order of heaven--the system of laws by which the gods and the angels are governed. Are they governed by law? Certainly. There is no being in all the eternities but what is governed by law. Who desires to have liberty and no law? They who are from beneath. 14:280.

Our religion, in common with everything of which God is the Author, is a system of law and order. He has instituted laws and ordinances for the government and benefit of the children of men, to see if they would obey them and prove themselves worthy of eternal life by the law of the celestial worlds. This holy Priesthood that we talk about is a perfect system of government. By obedience to these laws we expect to enter the celestial kingdom and to be exalted. 14:95.

The principles of truth and goodness, and of eternal lives and the power of God are from eternity to eternity. The principle of falsehood and wickedness, the power of the Devil and the power of death are also from eternity to eternity. These two powers have ever existed and always will exist in all the eternities that are yet to come. 11:234.

Embraces All Truth--Our religion measures, weighs, and circumscribes all the wisdom in the world--all that God has ever revealed to man. God has revealed all the truth that is now in the possession of the world, whether it be scientific or religious. The whole world are under obligation to him for what they know and enjoy; they are indebted to him for it all, and I acknowledge him in all things. 8:162.

I want to say to my friends that we believe in all good. If you can find a truth in heaven, earth or hell, it belongs to our doctrine. We believe it; it is ours; we claim it. 15:335.

In a word, if "Mormonism" is not my life, I do not know that I have any. I do not understand anything else, for it embraces everything that comes within the range of the understanding of man. If it does not circumscribe everything {3} that is in heaven and on earth, it is not what it purports to be. 2:123.

Our religion is simply the truth. It is all said in this one expression--it embraces all truth, wherever found, in all the works of God and man that are visible or invisible to mortal eye. 10:251.

The Gospel is simple, it is plain.

There is no mystery throughout the whole plan of salvation, only to those who do not understand. 3:367.

"Mormonism" embraces all truth that is revealed and that is unrevealed, whether religious, political, scientific, or philosophical. 9:149.

It comprehends all true science known by man, angels, and the gods. There is one true system and science of life; all else tends to death. That system emanates from the Fountain of life. 8:70.

True science, true art and true knowledge comprehend all that are in heaven or on the earth, or in all the eternities. By these all beings exist, whether they be celestial, terrestial or telestial; or whether they are from beneath and dwell with the devils among the damned. All truth is ours. 14:281.

"Where is your code, your particular creed?" says one. It fills eternity; it is all truth in heaven, on earth or in hell. This is "Mormonism." It embraces every true science; all true philosophy. 14:280.

The philosophy of the heavens and the earth of the worlds that are, that were, and that are yet to come into existence, is all in the Gospel that we have embraced. Every true philosopher, so far as he understands the principles of truth, has so much of the Gospel, and so far he is a Latter-day Saint, whether he knows it or not. Our {4} Father, the great God, is the author of the sciences, he is the great mechanic, he is the systematizer of all things, he plans and devises all things, and every particle of knowledge which man has in his possession is the gift of God, whether they consider it divine, or whether it is the wisdom of man; it belongs to God, and he has bestowed it upon us, his children dwelling here upon the earth. 18:359.

A fact is a fact, all truth issues forth from the Fountain of truth, and the sciences are facts as far as men have proved them. 14:117.

"Mormonism," so-called, embraces every principle pertaining to life and salvation, for time and eternity. No matter who has it. If the infidel has got truth it belongs to "Mormonism." The truth and sound doctrine possessed by the sectarian world, and they have a great deal, all belongs to this Church. As for their morality, many of them are, morally, just as good as we are. All that is good, lovely, and praiseworthy belongs to this Church and Kingdom. "Mormonism" includes all truth. There is no truth but what belongs to the Gospel. It is life, eternal life; it is bliss; it is the fulness of all things in the gods and in the eternities of the gods. 11:375.

We wish to frame, fashion and build after the pattern that God has revealed; and in doing so we take all the laws, rules, ordinances and regulations contained in the Scriptures and practice them as far as possible, and then keep learning and improving until we can live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. 13:238.

The Lord reveals a little here and a little there, line upon line, and he will continue to do so until we can reach into eternity and embrace a fulness of his glory, excellency and power. 13:241. {5}

Truth will endure for ever and for ever, and every man that preaches the Gospel of salvation may take the old text that some of us took in the commencement of the building up of the Kingdom of God upon the earth in the last days. I took truth for my text, salvation for my subject, and the whole world for my circuit, to go as far as I could and talk all I could about it. It takes every truth from every sect and party. What! in a civil capacity also? Yes. All law, all powers, all kingdoms, and all thrones,--in fine, all things are under the control of God. 7:148.

When the Gospel of the Son of God is introduced among the children of men, it comes with light and intelligence, with pure and holy principles. It embraces all morality, all virtue, all light, all intelligence, all greatness, and all goodness. It introduces a system of laws and ordinances and a code of moral rectitude which, if obeyed by the human family, will lead them back to the presence of God. 11:235.

For me, the plan of salvation must be a system that is pure and holy in all its points; it must reveal things that no other church or kingdom can reveal; it must circumscribe the knowledge that is upon the face of the earth, or it is not from God. Such a plan incorporates every system of true doctrine on the earth, whether it be ecclesiastical, moral, philosophical, or civil; it incorporates all good laws that have been made from the days of Adam until now; it swallows up the laws of nations, for it exceeds them all in knowledge and purity, it circumscribes the doctrines of the day, and takes from the right and the left, and brings all truth together in one system, and leaves the chaff to be scattered hither and thither. That is the proof to me, and has been from the beginning, that the {6} principles are pure and holy; and every person living to them will attain through them sanctification. 7:148.

I will tell you who the real fanatics are: they are they who adopt false principles and ideas as facts, and try to establish a superstructure upon a false foundation. They are the fanatics; and however ardent and zealous they may be, they may reason or argue on false premises till doomsday, and the result will be false. 13:271.

Increasing Knowledge of Gospel--I want to say that we are for the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth; we are pursuing the path of truth, and by and by we expect to possess a great deal more than we do now; but to say that we shall ever possess all truth, I pause; I do not know when. 14:196.

The laws that the Lord has given are not fully perfect, because the people could not receive them in their perfect fulness; but they can receive a little here and a little there, a little today and a little tomorrow, a little more next week, and a little more in advance of that next year, if they make a wise improvement upon every little they receive; if they do not, they are left in the shade, and the light which the Lord reveals will appear darkness to them, and the kingdom of heaven will travel on and leave them groping. Hence, if we wish to act upon the fulness of the knowledge that the Lord designs to reveal, little by little, to the inhabitants of the earth, we must improve upon every little as it is revealed. 2:314.

We know enough to damn us; and when we know enough for that, we know enough to save us, if that knowledge is improved upon. 6:198.

Holds Power of Priesthood--The Gospel which we preach is the Gospel of life and salvation. The Church {7} which we represent is the Church and Kingdom of God, and possesses the only faith by which the children of men can be brought back into the presence of our Father and God. The Lord has set his hands to restore all things as in the beginning, and by the administration of his holy Priesthood, save all who can be saved, cleanse from the world the consequences of the Fall and give it to the hands of his Saints.

The Gospel of salvation--the Priesthood of the Son of God--is so ordered and organized, in the very nature of it, being a portion of that law of heaven by which worlds are organized, that it is calculated to enlighten the children of men and give them power to save themselves. It is of the same nature as the further principles of eternal existence by which the worlds are and were, and by which they will endure; and these principles are pure in their nature, from the fact that they are of God, who is pure; but, without the revelation of the Spirit of God, no man can understand them. That is the peculiarity there is about this mysterious work. 7:54.

The power of all truth dwells in the bosom of our Father and God, which he dispenses to his children as he will, by the means of his eternal Priesthood. He is enthroned in the light, glory and power of truth. He has abided the truth, and is thereby exalted, and his power, light and glory are eternal. The Gospel and the Priesthood are the means he employs to save and exalt his obedient children to the possession with him of the same glory and power to be crowned with crowns of glory, immortality and eternal lives. 9:330.

Now, we say to the people of the nineteenth century, and we speak the truth and lie not, whosoever believes that {8} Joseph Smith, Junior, was a Prophet sent of God, and was ordained by him to receive and hold the keys of the holy Priesthood, which is after the order of the Son of God, and power to build up the Kingdom of God upon the earth, to gather the House of Israel, to guide all who believe and obey to redemption, to restore that which has been lost through transgression--whosoever believes this, believing in the Lord, and obeying his commandments to the end of their lives, their names shall not be blotted out of the Lamb's book of life, and they shall receive crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal life. This is for the nineteenth century, for the generation of people now living. 12:101.

The Gospel of Life and Salvation--We have something more than morality alone to teach the people. What is it? It is how to redeem the human family. 19:47.

I will now say to my friends,--and I call you all, and all mankind, friends, until you have proved yourselves, enemies,--you who do not belong to this Church, that we have got the Gospel of life and salvation. I do not say that we have a Gospel, but I say that we have the definite and only Gospel that ever was or ever will be that will save the children of men. 12:313.

It Takes the Whole Man to Make a Saint--There are no exceptions in "Mormonism." Learn so to think and direct your acts in every transaction of life, that we may overcome the evil that is sown within us. Overcome the inward enemy; then we can overcome the Devil's kingdom. And while others choose evil principles and build upon a foundation which leads to destruction, let us build upon the principles of eternal salvation, as we have striven to do all the day long. 7:66.

The doctrines of salvation are the same now as they {9} were in the days of Adam, or Elijah, or Jesus, when he was upon the earth. 5:229.

We have brought the doctrine of life and salvation to you, that you may exchange your low, narrow, contracted, selfish dispositions for the ennobling Spirit of the Lord, for the Spirit of the Gospel, which gives joy and peace. If you enjoy that, your food will be sweet to you, your sleep will be refreshing, and your days will pass away in usefulness. 3:119.

We have as good a right to adopt tenets in our religion as the Church of England, or the Methodists, or Baptists, or any other denomination have in theirs. Our doctrine is a Bible doctrine, a patriarchal doctrine, and is the doctrine of the gods of eternity, and of the heavens, and was revealed to our fathers on the earth, and will save the world at last. 2:187.

The revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ are sweeter than honey or the honeycomb. We can eat, and continue to eat; drink, and continue to drink. Is there durable satisfaction? Yes. I am in the height of my enjoyment. All the pleasure and all the joy that can be bestowed upon a finite being is in the Gospel of salvation, through the Spirit of revelation, upon the creature--upon the Saint of God--old or young, male or female. Not that this comparison fully conveys the idea; for the language of mortals fails to fully portray the joys of the Gospel of life everlasting. 8:139.

We have the Gospel of life and salvation, to make bad men good and good men better. We are to preach, exhort expound, continue in our duty, be fervent in spirit, bearing and forbearing with our brethren, being filled with love and kindness. 8:130. {10}

There is no freedom anywhere outside the Gospel of salvation. 5:52.

Offers Salvation to All--A few here and a few there will receive the truth, and the Lord will empty the earth of the wickedness that now dwells upon it. 8:195.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the opening avenue--the open gate in the road or way from earth to heaven, through which direct revelation comes to the children of men in their various capacities, according to their callings and standing in the society in which they live. The Gospel of salvation is a portion of the law that pertains to the kingdom where God resides; and the ordinances pertaining to the holy Priesthood are the means by which the children of men find access to the way of life, wherein they can extend their travels until they return to the presence of their Father and God. 8:159.

"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to continue to be the sons of God." Instead of receiving the Gospel to become the sons of God, my language would be--to receive the Gospel that we may continue to be the sons of God. Are we not all sons of God when we are born into this world? Old Pharaoh, King of Egypt, was just as much a son of God as Moses and Aaron were his sons, with this difference--he rejected the word of the Lord, the true light, and they received it. For "this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil." Then we receive not the Gospel that we may become the sons of God but that we may remain the sons of God without rebuke. Inasmuch as all had apostatized, they had to become the sons of God by adoption, still, originally, all were the sons of God. We receive the Gospel, not that we {11} may have our names written in the Lamb's book of life, but that our names may not be blotted out of that book. "For," saith the Lord, "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life." Why? Because he had overcome through his faithfulness. My doctrine is--that there never was a son and daughter of Adam and Eve born on this earth whose names were not already written in the Lamb's book of life, and there they will remain until their conduct is such that the angel who keeps the record is authorized to blot them out and record them elsewhere. 12:100-101.

In conversation not long since with a visitor who was about returning to the Eastern States, said he, "You, as a people, consider that you are perfect?" "Oh, no;" said I, "not by any means. Let me define to you. The doctrine that we have embraced is perfect; but when we come to the people, we have just as many imperfections as you can ask for. We are not perfect; but the Gospel that we preach is calculated to perfect the people so that they can obtain a glorious resurrection and enter into the presence of the Father and the Son." 11:304.

Our motive is to make every man and woman to know just as much as we do; this is the plan of the Gospel, and this is what I would like to do. I would like all the Latter-day Saints to come up to this standard, and know as much as I do, and then just as much more as they can learn, and if they can get ahead of me, all right. 19:96.

We declare it to all the inhabitants of the earth from the valleys in the tops of these mountains that we are the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--not a church but the Church--and we have the doctrine of life and salvation for all the honest-in-heart in all the world. 12:173. {12}

This Gospel will save the whole human family; the blood of Jesus will atone for our sins, if we accept the terms he has laid down; but we must accept those terms or else it will avail nothing in our behalf.

A Guide in Daily Life--I reduce the Gospel to the present time, circumstances and condition of the people. 10:1.

That system that brings present security and peace is the best to live by, and the best to die by; it is the best for doing business; it is the best for making farms, for building cities and temples, and that system is the law of God. But it requires strict obedience. The rule of right, and the line which God has drawn for the people to walk by insures peace, comfort, and happiness now and eternal glory and exaltation; but nothing short of strict obedience to God's law will do this. 13:241.

We do not allow ourselves to go into a field to plough without taking our religion with us; we do not go into an office, behind the counter to deal out goods, into a counting house with the books, or anywhere to attend to or transact any business without taking our religion with us. If we are railroading or on a pleasure trip our God and our religion must be with us. We are the most religious people in the world; but we are not so enthusiastic as some are. We have seen plenty of enthusiasm, but we do not care about it. Said I, "This shouting and singing one's self away to everlasting bliss, may be all very well in its place, but this alone is folly to me; my religion is to know the will of God and do it." 14:118.

With God, and also with those who understand the principles of life and salvation, the Priesthood, the oracles of truth and the gifts and callings of God to the children of men, there is no difference in spiritual and temporal {13} labors--all are one. If I am in the line of my duty, I am doing the will of God, whether I am preaching, praying, laboring with my hands for an honorable support; whether I am in the field, mechanic's shop, or following mercantile business, or wherever duty calls, I am serving God as much in one place as another; and so it is with all, each in his place, turn and time. 13:260.

Our religion descends to the whole life of man, although some, sometimes, say, there is divine law, there is human law, and there are principles which pertain to our religion and there are principles which pertain to the philosophy of the world. But let me here say to you, that the philosophy of the religion of heaven incorporates every truth that there is in heaven, on earth, or in hell. 15:125.

My mission to the people is to teach them with regard to their every-day lives. I presume there are many here who have heard me say, years and years ago, that I cared very little about what will take place after the Millennium. Elders may preach long discourses concerning what took place in the days of Adam, what occurred before the creation, and what will take place thousands of years from now, talking of things which have occurred or that will occur yet, of which they are ignorant, feeding the people on wind; but that is not my method of teaching. My desire is to teach the people what they should do now, and let the Millennium take care of itself. To teach them to serve God and to build up his Kingdom is my mission. I have taught faith, repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost. We are to be taught with regard to our every-day life in a temporal point of view. 12:228.

Our religion incorporates every act and word of man. {14} No man should go to merchandising unless he does it in God; no man should go to farming or any other business unless he does it in the Lord. No man of council should sit to judge the people but what should judge in the Lord, that he may righteously and impartially discern between right and wrong, truth and error, light and darkness, justice and injustice. Should any legislature sit without the Lord? If it do, sooner or later it will fall to pieces. No nation ever did live that counseled and transacted its national affairs without the Lord, but what sooner or later went to pieces and came to naught. The same is true of all the nations that now live or ever will live. 13:60.

This Gospel is full of good sense, judgment, discretion and intelligence. 14:17.

No matter how true and beautiful truth is, you have to take the passions of the people and mould them to the law of God. 7:55.

A Fountain of Truth--The Gospel is a fountain of truth, and truth is what we are after. We have embraced the truth--namely, the Gospel of the Son of God. Its first principles are to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, to repent of our sins, then go down into the waters of baptism for the remission of our sins, and have hands laid upon us for the reception of the Holy Ghost, which will lead us into all truth? 12.268.

Truth will abide when error passes away. Life will remain when they who have rejected the words of eternal life are swallowed up in death. I like the truth because it is true, because it is lovely and delightful, because it is so glorious in its nature, and so worthy the admiration, faith and consideration of all intelligent beings in heaven or on the earth. Should I be hated and my name cast out as {15} evil because I love the truth? Yes, or the words of Jesus could not be fulfilled, for he said, "Ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake." He told his disciples to rejoice evermore and to pray without ceasing when they were held in derision by their enemies, and to lift up their heads and rejoice when all men spoke evil of them, for "behold your redemption draweth nigh." 13:216.

To me it is more rational for an intelligent being to embrace truth, than it is to mix up a little truth with a great deal of error, or to embrace all error and undertake to follow a phantom. 13:235.

Some who call themselves Christians are very tenacious with regard to the Universalians, yet the latter possess many excellent ideas and good truths. Have the Catholics? Yes, a great many very excellent truths. Have the Protestants? Yes, from first to last. Has the infidel? Yes, he has a good deal of truth; and truth is all over the earth. The earth could not stand but for the light and truth it contains. The people could not abide were it not that truth holds them. It is the Fountain of truth that feeds, clothes, and gives light and intelligence to the inhabitants of the earth, no matter whether they are saints or sinners. Do you think there is any truth in hell? Yes, a great deal, and where truth is there we calculate the Lord has a right to be. You will not find the Lord where there is no truth. 12:70.

If you love the truth you can remember it. 3:358.

Again, what do you love truth for? Is it because you can discover a beauty in it, because it is congenial to you; or because you think it will make you a ruler, or a Lord? If you conceive that you will attain to power upon such a motive, you are much mistaken. It is a trick of the unseen power, that is abroad amongst the inhabitants of the earth {16} that leads them astray, binds their minds, and subverts their understanding.

Suppose that our Father in heaven, our Elder Brother, the risen Redeemer, the Savior of the world, or any of the gods of eternity should act upon this principle, to love truth, knowledge, and wisdom, because they are all powerful, and by the aid of this power they could send devils to hell, torment the people of the earth, exercise sovereignty over them, and make them miserable at their pleasure; they would cease to be Gods; and as fast as they adopted and acted upon such principles, they would become devils, and be thrust down in the twinkling of an eye; the extension of their kingdom would cease, and their Godhead come to an end.

No man can disprove a truth. 8:132.

What do you know on natural principles? I do not say natural philosophy, because my religion is natural philosophy. You never heard me preach a doctrine but what has a natural system to it, and, when understood, is as easy to comprehend as that two and two equal four. All the revelations of the Lord Almighty to the children of men, and all revealed doctrines of salvation are upon natural principles, upon natural philosophy. When I use this term, I use it as synonymous with the plan of salvation; natural philosophy is the plan of salvation, and the plan of salvation is natural philosophy. 4:202.

Our doctrine and practice is, and I have made it mine through life--to receive truth no matter where it comes from. 14:160.

When we demonstrate a truth, we demonstrate a portion of the faith, law, or power by which all intelligent beings exist, whether in heaven or on earth, consequently {17} when we have truth in our possession we have so much of the knowledge of God. I delight in this, because truth is calculated to sustain itself; it is based upon eternal facts and will endure, while all else will, sooner or later, perish. 14:115.

All truth is worthy and worth possessing. 19:39.

How easy it is to live by the truth. Did you ever think of it, my friends? Did you ever think of it, my brethren and sisters? In every circumstance of life, no matter whether among the humble or lofty, truth is always the surest guide and the easiest to square our lives by. 14:76.

Be willing to receive the truth, let it come from whom it may; no difference, not a particle. Just as soon receive the Gospel from Joseph Smith as from Peter, who lived in the days of Jesus. Receive it from one man as soon as another. If God has called an individual and sent him to preach the Gospel that is enough for me to know; it is no matter who it is, all I want is to know the truth. 14:136.

All truth is for the salvation of the children of men--for the benefit and learning--for their furtherance in the principles of divine knowledge; and divine knowledge is any matter of fact--truth; and all truth pertains to divinity. 7:284.

We Need a Practical Religion--I am preaching to you practical religion. 13:155.

I am decidedly in favor of practical religion--of everyday useful life. And if I today attend to what devolves upon me to do, and then do that which presents itself tomorrow, and so on, when eternity comes I will be prepared to enter on the things of eternity. But I would not be prepared for that sphere of action, unless I could manage {18} the things that are now within my reach. You must all learn to do this. 5:3.

I still feel to urge upon the Latter-day Saints the necessity of a close application of the principles of the Gospel in our lives, conduct and words and all that we do; and it requires the whole man, the whole life to be devoted to improvement in order to come to knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ. Herein is the fulness of perfection. It was couched in the character of our Savior; although but a scanty portion of it was made manifest to the people, in consequence of their not being able to receive it. All they were prepared to receive he gave them. All we are prepared to receive the Lord gives us; all that the nations of the earth are prepared to receive he imparts unto them. 12:225-226.

On reading carefully the Old and New Testaments we can discover that the majority of the revelations given to mankind anciently were in regard to their daily duties; we follow in the same path. The revelations contained in the Bible and the Book of Mormon are examples to us, and the book of Doctrine and Covenants contains direct revelation to this Church; they are a guide to us, and we do not wish to do them away; we do not want them to become obsolete and to set them aside. We wish to continue in the revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ day by day, and to have his Spirit with us continually. If we can do this, we shall no more walk in darkness but we shall walk in the light of life. 10:284.

If we wish to enjoy the Spirit of Zion, we must live for it. Our religion is not merely theory; it is a practical religion, to bring present enjoyment to every heart. 8:33.

At times when I think of addressing you, it occurs to {19} me that strict sermonizing upon topics pertaining to the distant future, or reviewing the history of the past, will doubtless please and highly interest a portion of my hearers; but my judgment and the spirit of intelligence that is in me teach that, by taking such a course, the people would not be instructed pertaining to their every-day duties. For this reason, I do not feel impressed to instruct you on duties to be performed a hundred years hence, but rather to give those instructions pertaining to the present, to our daily walk and conversation, that we may know how to benefit ourselves under the passing time, and present privileges, and be able to lay a foundation for future happiness. 3:272.

The work of building up Zion is in every sense a practical work; it is not a mere theory. A theoretical religion amounts to very little real good or advantage to any person. To possess an inheritance in Zion or in Jerusalem only in theory--only in imagination--would be the same as having no inheritance at all. It is necessary to get a deed of it, to make an inheritance practical, substantial and profitable. Then let us not rest contented with a mere theoretical religion, but let it be practical, self-purifying and self-sustaining, keeping the love of God within us, walking by every precept, by every law, and by every word that is given to lead us. 9:284.

The religion of Jesus Christ is a matter-of-fact religion, and taketh hold of the every-day duties and realities of this life. 1:133.

I am in the hands of the Lord, and never trouble myself about my salvation, or what the Lord will do with me hereafter. It is for me to do the will of God today, and when tomorrow comes, to inquire what is his will concerning {20} me; then do the will of my Father in the work he has appointed me to do, and that is enough for me. I am serving a God who will give me all I merit, when I come to receive my reward. This is what I have always thought; and if I still think so, it is enough for me. 6:276.

Temporal Labors are Necessary--In the mind of God there is no such a thing as dividing spiritual from temporal, or temporal from spiritual; for they are one in the Lord. 11:18.

The brethren have been talking about temporal things. We cannot talk about spiritual things without connecting with them temporal things, neither can we talk about temporal things without connecting spiritual things with them. They are inseparably connected. 10:329.

I cannot, however, define any difference between temporal and spiritual labors. I call it spiritual to accommodate my language to the ideas of the people. Anything that pertains to the building up of the Lord's kingdom on earth, whether it be in preaching the Gospel or building temples to his name, we have been taught to consider a spiritual work, though it evidently requires the strength of the natural body to perform it. 2:95.

Be wise: be as wise as the generations of this world. In the days of Jesus, those who received the kingdom and the spirit of the kingdom seemed to lose all sight of a temporal salvation; and Jesus said to his disciples, "The children of this world are wiser in their generations than the children of light." The children of light did not know how to sustain themselves; they did not understand how to preserve themselves and the kingdom with them. 4:343.

If you cannot provide for your natural lives, how can you expect to have wisdom to obtain eternal lives? God {21} has given you your existence--your body and spirit, and has blest you with ability, and thereby laid the foundation of all knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, and all glory and eternal lives. If you have not attained ability to provide for your natural wants, and for a wife and a few children, what have you to do with heavenly things? 8:68.

We cannot even enter the temple when it is built, and perform those ordinances which lead to spiritual blessings, without performing a temporal labor. Temporal ordinances must be performed to secure the spiritual blessings the Great Supreme has in store for his faithful children. Every act is first a temporal act. The Apostle says, faith comes by hearing. What should be heard to produce faith? The preaching of the Word. For that we must have a preacher; and he is not an invisible spirit, but a temporal, ordinary man like ourselves, and subject to the same regulations and rules of life. To preach the Gospel is a temporal labor, and to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is the result of a temporal labor. To be baptized is a temporal labor, both to the person administered to and the administrator. I am a living witness to the truth of this statement, for I have made my feet sore many a time, and tired myself out traveling and preaching, that by hearing the Gospel the people might have faith. The blessings we so earnestly desire will come to us by performing the manual labor required, and thus preparing all things necessary to receive the invisible blessings Jehovah has for his children. 9:240.

There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. All things are natural, and all are spiritual. Every duty of life, no matter what it is, every requirement necessary to sustain and exalt man, is incorporated in the Kingdom of God and in the ordinances of his house--in the duties God {22} requires of his children. It is all in the Church and Kingdom of our God. "What! our labor?" Yes. I sometimes take the liberty of preaching upon economy to this people. Perhaps some are inclined to think that in so doing I transcend my own duties and obligations. I do not. I instruct the husbandman how to till his farm, because I know and I understand the nature of the elements that produce grain better than he does. I know how he should prepare the elements for the seed to produce the increase which he desires in the things necessary to sustain himself and family. It is my duty to instruct my brethren, if I understand my branch of business better than they do. If I understand how to make myself comfortable--if I understand better than others do the organization of the elements God has given us ability to operate with for our benefit, it is my duty to instruct them. Here are the elements. They are not made in vain, but are made for the benefit, comfort, convenience, and happiness of God's children.

The principles of eternity and eternal exaltation are of no use to us, unless they are brought down to our capacities so that we practice them in our lives. 4:28.

We Need a Present, Every-day Religion--My religion must be with me from one Monday morning to the next, the year around, or it will not answer me. 1:338.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ, as it is given in the Old and New Testaments, the Book of Mormon, the book of Doctrine and Covenants, and in the experience of every true Christian who has lived and still lives upon the earth, teaches that it is the privilege of every Saint so to live and walk before their God, as to enjoy the light of the spirit of truth-from day to day, from week to week, and from year to year, through their whole lives. Without this privilege {23} in the Gospel, connected with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, I should be inclined to believe that the religion that is taught in the Bible and in the Book of Mormon, would amount to nothing more than a mere phantom--an imaginary thing. It would be inadequate to satisfy, in any degree, the mind of man, as it is now organized. 1:233.

Were it not that our bodies have to be fed and clothed, I would propose that we tarry here a few months, to give all a chance to speak, to exhort, to pray, to prophesy, to sing, to speak in tongues, or to do whatsoever the Spirit should manifest unto them. But our work is a work of the present. The salvation we are seeking is for the present, and sought correctly, it can be obtained, and be continually enjoyed. If it continues to-day, it is upon the same principle that it will continue to-morrow, the next day, the next week, or the next year, and, we might say, the next eternity. 1:131.

It is present salvation and the present influence of the Holy Ghost that we need every day to keep us on saving ground. When an individual refuses to comply with the further requirements of Heaven, then the sins he had formerly committed return upon his head; his former righteousness departs from him, and is not accounted to him for righteousness; but if he had continued in righteousness and obedience to the requirements of Heaven, he is saved all the time, through baptism, the laying on of hands, and obeying the commandments of the Lord and all that is required of him by the heavens--the living oracles. He is saved now, next week, next year, and continually, and is prepared for the celestial kingdom of God whenever the time comes for him to inherit it. 8:124.

There is no life more precious than the present life which {24} we enjoy; there is no life that is worth any more to us than this life is. It may be said that an eternal life is worth more. We are in eternity, and all that we have to do is to take the road that leads into the eternal lives. Eternal life is an inherent quality of the creature, and nothing but sin can put a termination to it. The elements in their nature are as eternal as are the gods. Let us learn, under the guidance and direction of Heaven, how to use these eternal elements for the building up, establishment and sending forth, of the Kingdom of God, gathering up the poor in heart to begin with, and the further things we will learn as we progress. 10:22.

I wish to urge upon the people the necessity of knowing what to do with their present life, which pertains more particularly to temporalities. The very object of our existence here is to handle the temporal elements of this world and subdue the earth, multiplying those organisms of plants and animals God has designed shall dwell upon it. When we have learned to live according to the full value of the life we now possess, we are prepared for eternal advancement in the scale of eternal progression--for a more glorious and exalted sphere. 9:168.

Tradition has taught us that the great purpose of religion is to prepare people to die; that when they have passed through a change of heart, become converted, then they are ready for glory at any moment and to dwell with the Father and the Son in the heavens to all eternity. This is a mistake; for they have to improve, become substantially changed from bad to good, from sin to holiness, here or somewhere else, before they are prepared for the society they anticipate enjoying. They would not be nearly so well prepared for the society of the sanctified in heaven as a person {25} brought up in the lowest classes of society would be prepared to present properly and conduct himself among the highest and most polished grades of mankind. Those who are counted worthy to dwell with the Father and the Son have previously received an education fitting them for that society; they have been made fully acquainted with every pass-word, token and sign which has enabled them to pass by the porters through the doors into the celestial kingdom. 10:172.

I want present salvation. I preach, comparatively, but little about the eternities and Gods, and their wonderful works in eternity; and do not tell who first made them, nor how they were made; for I know nothing about that. Life is for us, and it is for us to receive it today, and not wait for the Millennium. Let us take a course to be saved today, and, when evening comes, review the acts of the day, repent of our sins, if we have any to repent of, and say our prayers; then we can lie down and sleep in peace until the morning, arise with gratitude to God, commence the labors of another day, and strive to live the whole day to God and nobody else. 8:124.

We Must Learn to Support Ourselves--I am under obligation to take a course which will sustain life within myself and others, on rational principles, without any special manifestation from God. 14:111.

I have tried continually to get this people to pursue a course that will make them self-sustaining, taking care of their poor, the lame, the halt and the blind, lifting the ignorant from where they have no opportunity of observing the ways of the world, and of understanding the common knowledge possessed among the children of men, bringing them together from the four quarters of the world, and making {26} of them an intelligent, thrifty and self-sustaining people. 12:195.

My warfare is, and has been for years, to get the people to understand that if they do not take care of themselves they will not be taken care of; that if we do not lay the foundation to feed and clothe and shelter ourselves we shall perish with hunger and with cold; we might also suffer in the summer season from the direct rays of the sun upon our naked and unprotected bodies. 10:200.

I see more and more that there are but very few men and women that are even capable of taking care of themselves temporally. 4:314. {27}

Chapter II

THE GODHEAD

Our Father in Heaven--Let every person be the friend of God. 4:372.

Some believe or conceive the idea that to know God would lessen him in our estimation; but I can say that for me to understand any principle or being, on earth or in heaven, it does not lessen its true value to me, but on the contrary, it increases it; and the more I can know of God, the dearer and more precious he is to me, and the more exalted are my feelings towards him. 13:57.

There is a Power that has organized all things from the crude matter that floats in the immensity of space. He has given form, motion and life to this material world; has made the great and small lights that bespangle the firmament above; has allotted to them their times and their seasons, and has marked out their spheres. He has caused the air and the waters to teem with life, and covered the hills and plains with creeping things, and has made man to be a ruler over his creations. All these wonders are the works of the Almighty Ruler of the universe, in whom we believe and whom we worship. 11:120.

All the creations are his work, and they are for his glory and for the benefit of the children of men; and all things are put into the possession of man for his comfort, improvement and consolation, and for his health, wealth, beauty and excellency. 13:151.

He is a God of system, order, law, science, and art; a God of knowledge and of power. 13:309.

He is the Father, God, Savior, Maker, Preserver, and {28} Redeemer of man. He holds in his hands the issue of all things and will judge every man according to his works. 3:259-260.

God is the source, the fountain of all intelligence, no matter who possesses it, whether man upon the earth, the spirits in the spirit-world, the angels that dwell in the eternities of the Gods, or the most inferior intelligence among the devils in hell. All have derived what intelligence, light, power, and existence they have from God--from the same source from which we have received ours. 8:205.

Every good and perfect gift cometh from God. Every discovery in science and art, that is really true and useful to mankind has been given by direct revelation from God, though but few acknowledge it. It has been given with a view to prepare the way for the ultimate triumph of truth, and the redemption of the earth from the power of sin and Satan. We should take advantage of all these great discoveries, the accumulated wisdom of ages, and give to our children the benefit of every branch of useful knowledge, to prepare them to step forward and efficiently do their part in the great work. 9:369.

He is our Heavenly Father; he is also our God, and the Maker and upholder of all things in heaven and on earth. He sends forth his counsels and extends his providences to all living. He is the Supreme Controller of the universe. At his rebuke the sea is dried up, and the rivers become a wilderness. He measures the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meteth out heaven with a span, and comprehendeth the dust of the earth in a measure, and weigheth the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance; the nations to him are as a drop in a bucket, and he taketh up the isles as a very little thing; the hairs of our heads are numbered {29} by him, and not a sparrow falleth to the ground without our Father; and he knoweth every thought and intent of the hearts of all living, for he is everywhere present by the power of his Spirit--his minister, the Holy Ghost. He is the Father of all, is above all, through all, and in you all; he knoweth all things pertaining to this earth, and he knows all things pertaining to millions of earths like this. 11:41.

Whether they make good or bad use of it, all power is ordained of God and is in his hand. He sets up a kingdom here, and pulls down another there at his pleasure. He breaks the nations like a potter's vessel; he forms a nucleus, and around it builds up a kingdom or nation, permitting the people to act upon their own agency, that they may do right, or corrupt themselves, as did the Children of Israel; and after they have become ripe for destruction, they will be scattered to the four winds. If the people of God in ancient days had continued holy they would have continued in power and authority to this day. 7:148.

If there is anything that is great and good and wise among men, it cometh from God. If there are men who possess great ability as statesmen, or as philosophers, or who possess remarkable scientific knowledge and skill, the credit thereof belongs to God, for he dispenses it to his children whether they believe in him or not, or whether they sin against him or not; it makes no difference; but all will have to account to him for the way and manner in which they have used the talents committed unto them. If we believe the plain, broad statements of the Bible, we must believe that Jesus Christ is the light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world; none are exempt. 11:123. {30}

The fulness of the heavens and the earth is the Lord's--the gold and the silver, the wheat, the fine flour, and the cattle upon a thousand hills; and when we fully understand his works, we shall know that he is in all the earth, and fulfils his will among the children of men, exalting and debasing them according to his pleasure, for the systems, creeds, thrones, and kingdoms of the world are all under his control. 1:49.

We believe that God is round about all things, above all things, in all things, and through all things: To tell about empty space is to tell of a space where God is not, and where the wicked might safely hide from his presence. There is not such a thing as empty space. 1:276.

He is compassionate to all the works of his hands, the plan of his redemption, and salvation, and mercy is stretched out over all; and his plans are to gather up, and bring together, and save all the inhabitants of the earth, with the exception of those who have received the Holy Ghost, and sinned against it. With this exception, all the world besides shall be saved. 3:92.

When the Lord fights the battles of the Saints, he does it so effectually that nobody gets nervous but the enemy. 8:235.

No person deceives the Lord. 16:163.

It is written that God knows all things and has all power. He has the rule and command of this earth, and is the Father of all the human beings that have lived, do live and will live upon it. If any of his children become heirs to all things, they in their turn can say, by-and-by, that they know all things, and they will be called Supreme, Almighty, King of kings, Lord of lords. All this and more that cannot enter into our hearts to conceive is promised to {31} the faithful, and are but so many stages in that ceaseless progression of eternal lives. This will not detract anything from the glory and might of our Heavenly Father. For he will still remain our Father, and we shall still be subject to him, and as we progress in glory and power, the more it enhances the glory and power of our Heavenly Father. This principle holds good in either state, whether mortal or immortal. 10:5.

All that the Lord requires of us is a perfect submission in our hearts to his will. 18:238.

The Lord gives us little by little and is ever willing to give us more and more, even the fulness, when our hearts are prepared to receive all the truths of heaven. This is what the Lord desires, what he would delight in doing, for his children. 18:217.

Our Father in heaven wishes us to preserve that which he gives to us. 9:169.

He presides over the worlds on worlds that illuminate this little planet, and millions on millions of worlds that we cannot see; and yet he looks upon the minutest object of his creations; not one of these creatures escapes his notice; and there is not one of them but his wisdom and power has produced. 1:39.

I believe in a God who has power to exalt and glorify all who believe in him, and are faithful in serving him to the end of their lives, for this make them Gods, even the sons of God, and in this sense also there are Gods many, but to us there is but one God, and one Lord Jesus Christ--one Savior who came in the meridian of time to redeem the earth and the children of men from the original sin that was committed by our first parents, and bring to pass the restoration of all things through his death and suffering, open {32} wide to all believers the gates of life and salvation and exaltation to the presence of the Father and the Son to dwell with them for evermore. 11:122.

As I said once to my brethren in the School of the Prophets, I have not asked you, I dare not ask you to fulfil almost the first requirement of the Kingdom of Heaven, almost the simplest principle, and one of the first things that should be observed. I have not asked the people to perform this great labor, I will say it is a great labor, and if I were to refer it to you, you would say the same. You may ask what it is? It is to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy mind and with all thy strength, and thy neighbor as thyself. Now, is this not almost one of the first requirements that God has made of his people? And I have not yet required it of the people. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and then speak evil of thy neighbor? No! No! Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and speak that which is not true? No, oh, no! Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and take that which is not thy own? No, no, no! Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and seek after the riches of the world and forsake your religion? No! Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and take his name in vain, curse and swear? No, never! If the love of God was really in the hearts of all who call themselves Latter-day Saints, there would be no more swearing, no more lying, no more deceiving, no more speaking evil of one another, no more running after the ungodly nor dealing with the enemies of Zion, no more running after the gold mines; nothing would be sought after, only to build up the Kingdom of God. This we have not yet asked. But we do ask some things. Let us forsake those sins that are so grievous, and let us try to do right before the Heavens and with each other. 12:229. {33}

He has not committed the keys of the results of the acts of the nations of the earth to any man on the earth; but that power he retains to himself. 8:31.

What is commonly termed idolatry has arisen from a few sincere men, full of faith and having a little knowledge, urging upon a backsliding people to preserve some customs--to cling to some fashions or figures, to put them in mind of that God with whom their fathers were acquainted, without designing or wishing the people to worship an idol--to worship stocks, stones, beasts, and birds. Idols have been introduced, which are now worshiped, and have been for centuries and thousands of years; but they were not introduced at once. They were introduced to preserve among the people the idea of the true God. 6:194.

We are nothing, only what the Lord makes us. 5:343.

Cease bringing the names of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ into disrespect and learn to reverence those names. 7:147.

The Lord operates upon the principles of continuing to organize, of adding to, gathering up, bringing forth, increasing and spreading abroad; while the opposite power does not. It shows the nature of his opposition to that peculiar trait of Christianity, based upon the principles of eternal duration, increase, power, glory, and exaltation; and points out the difference between the two adverse powers. 1:117.

Unless God blesses our exertions we shall have nothing. It is the Lord that gives the increase. 3:331.

The God that I serve is progressing eternally, and so are his children: they will increase to all eternity, if they are faithful. 11:286.

It is written, "Prove all things, hold fast that which is {34} good." Refuse evil, choose good, hate iniquity, love truth. All this our fathers have done before us; I do not particularly mean Father Adam, or his Father; I do not particularly mean Abraham, or Moses, the Prophets, or Apostles, but I mean our fathers who have been exalted for millions of years previous to Adam's time. They have all passed through the same ordeals we are now passing through, and have searched all things, even to the depths of hell. 9:243.

The great architect, manager and superintendent, controller and dictator who guides this work is out of sight to our natural eyes. He lives on another world; he is in another state of existence; he has passed the ordeals we are now passing through; he has received an experience, has suffered and enjoyed, and knows all that we know regarding the toils, sufferings, life and death of this mortality, for he has passed through the whole of it, and has received his crown and exaltation and holds the keys and the power of this Kingdom; he sways his scepter, and does his will among the children of men, among Saints and among sinners, and brings forth results to suit his purpose among kingdoms and nations and empires, that all may redound to his glory and to the perfection of his work. 11:249.

How many Gods there are, I do not know. But there never was a time when there were not Gods and worlds, and when men were not passing through the same ordeals that we are now passing through. That course has been from all eternity, and it is and will be to all eternity. You cannot comprehend this but when you can, it will be to you a matter of great consolation. 7:333.

Wherever the human family dwell upon the face of the earth, whether they are savage or civilized, there is a desire implanted within them to worship a great Supreme Ruler, {35} and not knowing him they suppose that through offering worship and sacrifice to their idols they can conciliate his anger which they think they see manifested in the thunder, in the lightning, in the storm, in the floods, in the reverses of war, in the hand of death, etc., etc.; thus they try to woo his protection and his blessing for victory over their enemies, and at the termination of this life for a place in the heaven their imaginations have created, or tradition has handed down to them. I have much charity for this portion of the human family called heathens or idolators; they have made images to represent to their eyes a power which they cannot see, and desire to worship a Supreme Being through the figure which they have made. 11:120.

We believe in one God, one Mediator and one Holy Ghost. We cannot believe for a moment that God is destitute of body, parts, passions, or attributes. Attributes can be made manifest only through an organized personage. All attributes are couched in and are the results of organized existence. 10:192.

The Lord is perfectly independent. He has received his glory, he reigns supreme and omnipotent. He is not dependent upon you and me. If every one of us should apostatize and go down to hell, it would neither add to nor diminish from his glory. He would mourn at our folly in turning away from the holy commandments and suffering the wrath of the Almighty to come upon us; the heavens would weep over us, but still the Lord has his glory, and you and I are not laboring for his benefit. For whose benefit are we laboring? For our own. All my preaching, laboring and toils in this Kingdom have been for myself, to get into the Celestial Kingdom of God. I have been laboring for that and nothing else, 13:315. {36}

Read the history of any kingdom or nation, and trace through all the channels from the history of nations and kingdoms to that of families and individuals who have not known God nor observed his commandments, and you will find that sorrow and disappointment have been intimately mingled in all the gaiety, luxuries, and pretended enjoyments of their mortal lives. They have found a bitter sting in their happiest moments and a deadly poison in their cups. 6:39.

There is no influence, truth, or righteousness in the world, only what flows from God our Father in the heavens. 5:78.

Personality and Fatherhood of God--Some would have us believe that God is present everywhere. It is not so. He is no more everywhere present in person than the Father and Son are one in person. 6:345.

God is considered to be everywhere present at the same moment; and the Psalmist says, "Whither shall I flee from thy presence?" He is present with all his creations through his influence, through his government, spirit and power, but he himself is a personage of tabernacle, and we are made after his likeness. 10:319.

Our God and Father in Heaven, is a being of tabernacle, or, in other words, he has a body, with parts the same as you and I have; and is capable of showing forth his works to organized beings, as, for instance, in the world in which we live, it is the result of the knowledge and infinite wisdom that dwell in his organized body. His Son Jesus Christ has become a personage of tabernacle, and has a body like his Father. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of the Lord, and issues forth from himself, and may properly be called God's minister to execute his will in immensity; {37} being called to govern by his influence and power; but he is not a person of flesh as we are, and as our Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ are. 1:50.

The Kingdom of God on earth is a living, moving, effective institution, and is governed, controlled, dictated and led by the invisible God whom we serve who is an exalted, living being, possessing body, parts and passions, who listens to the prayers of his Saints, is a reasonable, merciful and intelligent being, who is filled with knowledge and wisdom, who is full of light and glory, and the foundations of whose throne are laid in eternal truth; whose personal form is perfect in proportion and beauty. He loves the good, and is angry with the wicked every day as it is written in the Scriptures. He hates the evil that is done by evil doers, and is merciful to the repenting sinner. He is beloved by all who know him for the attributes he possesses in and of himself, in common with all glorified beings who now dwell with him, and who will yet be glorified and crowned with crowns of glory, immortality and eternal lives. 11:251.

It must be that God knows something about temporal things, and has had a body and been on an earth. Were it not so, he would not know how to judge men righteously, according to the temptations and sin they have had to contend with. 4:271.

Our Father in Heaven begat all the spirits that ever were, or ever will be, upon this earth; and they were born spirits in the eternal world. Then the Lord by his power and wisdom organized the mortal tabernacle of man. We were made first spiritual, and afterwards temporal. 1:50.

He is our Father; he is our God, the Father of our spirits; he is the framer of our bodies, and set the machine in successful operation to bring forth these tabernacles that {38} I now look upon in this building, and all that ever did or ever will live on the face of the whole earth. 13:250.

The Apostles and Prophets, when speaking of our relationship to God, say that we are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone, God is our Father, and Jesus Christ is our Elder Brother, and both are our everlasting friends. 6:332.

The kingdoms he possesses and rules over are his own progeny. Every man who is faithful and gets a salvation and glory, and becomes a King of kings and Lord of lords, or a Father of fathers, it will be by the increase of his own progeny. Our Father and God rules over his own children. Wherever there is a God in all the eternities possessing a kingdom and glory and power it is by means of his own progeny. 11:262.

Many have tried to penetrate to the First Cause of all things; but it would be as easy for an ant to number the grains of sand on the earth. It is not for man, with his limited intelligence, to grasp eternity in his comprehension. There is an eternity of life, from which we were composed by the wisdom and skill of Superior Beings. It would be as easy for a gnat to trace the history of man back to his origin as for man to fathom the First Cause of all things, lift the veil of eternity, and reveal the mysteries that have been sought after by philosophers from the beginning. What then, should be the calling and duty of the children of men? Instead of inquiring after the origin of Gods--instead of trying to explore the depths of eternities that have been, that are, and that will be, instead of endeavoring to discover the boundaries of boundless space, let them seek to know the object of their present existence, and how to apply, in the most profitable manner for their mutual good and salvation, the intelligence they possess. Let them seek to {39} know and thoroughly understand things within their reach, and to make themselves well acquainted with the object of their being here, by diligently seeking unto a super-power for information and by the careful study of the best books. 7:284-5.

God has given this great variety of intelligence. He has also given this great variety of forms--that eternal variety which we see upon this earth, not only among human beings, but in every class of all the creations of God; and they are all designed to be preserved to all eternity. None of them were made to be destroyed, except those that do not abide the law given them. 8:8.

I now see before me beings who are in the image of those heavenly personages who are enthroned in glory and crowned with eternal lives in the very image of those beings who organized the earth and its fulness, and who constitute the Godhead. 9:246.

The Son of God--Our faith is concentrated in the Son of God, and through him in the Father; and the Holy Ghost is their minister to bring truths to our remembrance, to reveal new truths to us, and teach, guide, and direct the course of every mind, until we become perfected and prepared to go home, where we can see and converse with our Father in Heaven. 6:98.

The Latter-day Saints believe in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of the Father, who came in the meridian of time, performed his work, suffered the penalty and paid the debt of man's original sin by offering up himself, was resurrected from the dead, and ascended to his Father; and as Jesus descended below all things, so he will ascend above all things. We believe that Jesus Christ will come again, as it is written of him: "And while they looked {40} steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus which is taken from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." 11:123.

Jesus is our captain and leader; Jesus, the Savior of the world--the Christ that we believe in. 14:118.

I testify that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world; I have obeyed his sayings, and realized his promise, and the knowledge I have of him, the wisdom of this world cannot give, neither can it take away. 18:233.

My faith is placed upon the Lord Jesus Christ, and my knowledge I have received from him. 3:155.

Our Lord Jesus Christ--the Savior, who has redeemed the world and all things pertaining to it, is the Only Begotten of the Father pertaining to the flesh. He is our Elder Brother, and the Heir of the family, and as such we worship him. He has tasted death for every man, and has paid the debt contracted by our first parents. 12:69.

None of them have power to produce themselves. Jesus Christ is the Heir of this vast family. He said that he had power to lay down his life and take it up again; but he had no more power to produce his life, in the beginning of his existence, than we have. Every human being is endowed, more or less, with eternal intelligence, with the germ of life everlasting, of glory immortal. 8:153.

He did nothing of himself. He wrought miracles and performed a good work on the earth; but of himself he did nothing. He said, "As I have seen my Father do, so do I." "I came not to do my will, but the will of him that sent me." We must come to the conclusion that the Son of {41} God did not suggest, dictate, act, or produce any manifestation of his power, of his glory, or of his errand upon the earth, only as it came from the mind and will of his Father. 6:96.

The Lord has revealed to us a plan by which we may be saved both here and hereafter. God has done everything we could ask, and more than we could ask. The errand of Jesus to earth was to bring his brethren and sisters back into the presence of the Father; he has done his part of the work, and it remains for us to do ours. There is not one thing that the Lord could do for the salvation of the human family that he has neglected to do; and it remains for the children of men to receive the truth or reject it; all that can be accomplished for their salvation, independent of them, has been accomplished in and by the Savior. It has been justly remarked this afternoon that "Jesus paid the debt; he atoned for the original sin; he came and suffered and died on the cross." He is now King of kings and Lords of lords, and the time will come when every knee will bow and every tongue confess, to the glory of God the Father, that Jesus is the Christ. That very character that was looked upon, not as the Savior, but as an outcast, who was crucified between two thieves and treated with scorn and derision, will be greeted by all men as the only Being through whom they can obtain salvation. 13:59.

Jesus was appointed, from the beginning, to die for our redemption, and he suffered an excruciating death on the cross. 8:115.

He has died to redeem it, and he is the lawful heir pertaining to this earth. Jesus will continue to reign with his Father, and is dictated by his Father in all his acts and ruling and governing in the building up and overthrow of {42} nations, to make the wrath of man praise him, until he brings all into subjection to his will and government. And when he has subdued all his enemies, destroyed death and him that hath the power of death, and perfected his work, he will deliver up the kingdom spotless to his Father. 7:144.

The character we have been hearing of is our Savior and Redeemer, the Savior of the whole world of mankind, and of all creatures pertaining to the earth, and the earth itself, for all will be redeemed by the blood of the Son of God. 14:130.

The moment the atonement of the Savior is done away, that moment, at one sweep, the hopes of salvation entertained by the Christian world are destroyed, the foundation of their faith is taken away, and there is nothing left for them to stand upon. When it is gone all the revelations God ever gave to the Jewish nation, to the Gentiles, and to us are rendered valueless, and all hope is taken from us at one sweep. 14:41.

The knowledge of the character of the Only Begotten of the Father comes to us through the testimony, not of disinterested witnesses, but of his friends, those who were most especially and deeply interested for their own welfare, and the welfare of their brethren. We have no testimony concerning the Savior's character and works, only from those who were thus interested in his welfare and success, and in the building up of his kingdom. It has been often said, if a disinterested witness would testify that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, many might believe his testimony; but no person could be believed, by any intelligent person, who would testify to a matter of such importance, and who would still view it as a thing in which he had no interest. But they who are interested, who know the {43} worth of that man and understand the spirit and the power of his mission, and the character of the Being that sent and ordained him, are the proper persons to testify of the truth of his mission, and they are the most interested of any living upon the earth. So it was with those who bore witness of the Savior, and of his mission on the earth. 11:41.

The Latter-day Saints and every other person who is entitled to salvation, and all except those who have sinned against the Holy Ghost, may know that Jesus is the Christ in the same way that Peter knew it. Miracles do not give this knowledge to mankind, though they may serve as collateral evidence to strengthen the believer. The miracles of Jesus were known to the Jews, yet they suffered him to be put to death as a deceiver of mankind and one possessed of a devil. 10:193.

Who are the Saints? All those who believe in Jesus Christ and keep his commandments. And who may be Saints? All the inhabitants of the earth, for Jesus said, "Come unto me, all ye ends of the earth, and be ye saved." 10:305.

All the Lord has called us to do is to renovate our own hearts, then our families, extending the principle to neighborhoods, to the earth we occupy, and so continue until we drive the power of Satan from the earth and Satan to his own place. That is the work Jesus is engaged in, and we will be co-workers with him. 10:173.

"I and my Father are one," says Jesus; what, one body? No, it never entered the Savior's mind that such a rendering of this saying would ever enter into the minds of persons holding the least claim to good sense. They are no more one person than I and one of my sons are one person. If my son receives my teaching, will walk in the path I {44} mark out for him to walk in, if his faith is the same as mine, his purpose is the same, and he does the work of his father as Jesus did the work of his Father, then is my son one with me in the scriptural sense. 10:192.

Inasmuch as the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one, the desire of the Savior, as manifested in his sayings and teachings, is, that his people should also be one, even as he and his Father are one. 6:97.

All the works of mankind amount to but little, unless they are performed in the name of the Lord and under the direction of his Spirit. Let every man seek to learn the things of God by the revelations of Jesus Christ to himself. 10:1.

Jesus undertook to establish the Kingdom of God upon the earth. He introduced the laws and ordinances of the Kingdom. 15:125.

Jesus Christ will draw all men unto him, except those who contend against the power of God and against his Kingdom until they have sealed their own damnation. 11:238.

Jesus fulfilled the obligations he had entered into as the heir of all things pertaining to this earth. 8:115.

We, the Latter-day Saints, certainly believe that Christ will accomplish all that he undertook to do, but he never yet said he would save a sinner in his sins, but that he would save him from his sins. He has instituted laws and ordinances whereby this can be effected. The "Mormon" Elder says that he will save all who come to him, all who hearken to his word and keep his commandments, and Jesus has said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." The "Mormon" says, "I love Jesus, and in proof of it I keep his commandments." 13:237. {45}

Jesus will redeem the last and least of the sons of Adam, except the sons of perdition, who will be held in reserve for another time. They will become angels of the Devil. 8:154.

Christ will not cease his labors pertaining to this earth until it is redeemed and sanctified, ready to be presented spotless to the Father. 10:18.

We believe that Jesus Christ will descend from heaven to earth again even as he ascended into heaven. "Behold, he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him." He will come to receive his own, and rule and reign king of nations as he does king of Saints; "For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." He will banish sin from the earth and its dreadful consequences, tears shall be wiped from every eye and there shall be nothing to hurt or destroy in all God's holy mountain. 11:123.

The Savior has not finished his work, and cannot receive the fulness of his glory until the influence and power of the wicked are overcome and brought into subjection. When the wicked inhabitants of the earth, the beasts of the field, fowls of the air, fish of the sea, all mineral substances, and all else pertaining to this earth, are overcome, then he will take the kingdom, present it to the Father, and say, "Here is the work you gave me to do--you made the appointment--I have wrought faithfully, and here are my brethren and sisters who have wrought with me. We have wrought faithfully together; we have overcome the flesh, hell and the Devil. I have overcome, they have followed in my footsteps, and here are all thou hast given me; I have lost none, except the sons of perdition." 8:118. {46}

When he again visits this earth, he will come to thoroughly purge his kingdom from wickedness, and, as ruler of the nations, to dictate and administer to them as the heir to the kingdom; and the Gentiles will be as much mistaken in regard to his second advent as the Jews were in relation to the first. 8:115.

Take a pride in acknowledging the Savior. Train and educate yourselves until you will take a pride in acknowledging God, the Author of all. Take a pride in the religion that makes you pure and holy, and that produces in the heart of every individual who embraces it a feeling to be truthful in every word he speaks, to be honest in every act he performs, in all his dealings with his neighbors. Take pride in this and fear not the wicked. 12:326.

The Latter-day Saints believe in the Gospel of the Son of God, simply because it is true. They believe in baptism for the remission of sins, personal and by proxy; they believe that Jesus is the Savior of the world; they believe that all who attain to any glory whatever, in any kingdom, will do so because Jesus has purchased it by his atonement. 13:323.

The Holy Ghost--The Holy Ghost, we believe, is one of the characters that form the Trinity, or the Godhead. Not one person in three, nor three persons in one; but the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one in essence, as the hearts of three men who are united in all things. He is one of the three characters we believe in, whose office it is to administer to those of the human family who love the truth. I have stated that they are one, as the hearts of three men might be one. Lest you should mistake me, I will say that I do not wish you to understand that the Holy Ghost is a personage having a tabernacle, like the Father and the Son; {47} but he is God's messenger that diffuses his influence through all the works of the Almighty. 6:95.

Not a desire, act, wish, or thought does the Holy Ghost indulge in contrary to that which is dictated by the Father. 6:95.

Now ask yourselves whether you believe that the Holy Ghost ever commenced to produce a work or an effect before it was in the heart and mind of that Being we call our Heavenly Father. Do you think that the Holy Ghost ever thought of dictating that Being we call our God? This whole people have learned enough upon this subject to answer at once, that we do not believe that the Holy Ghost ever dictated, suggested, moved, or pretended to offer a plan, except that which the Eternal Father dictated. 6:95.

Though a man should say but a few words, and his sentences and words be ever so ungrammatical, if he speaks by the power of the Holy Ghost, he will do good. 8:120.

I have proven to my satisfaction, according to the best knowledge I can gather, that man can be deceived by the sight of the natural eye, he can be deceived by the hearing of the ear, and by the touch of the hand; that he can be deceived in all of what is called the natural senses. But there is one thing in which he cannot be deceived. What is that? It is the operations of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit and power of God upon the creature. It teaches him of heavenly things; it directs him in the way of life; it affords him the key by which he can test the devices of man, and which recommends the things of God. Not only the Saints who are present, and who gathered to Zion, but those of every nation, continent, or island who live the religion taught by our Savior and his Apostles, and also by Joseph Smith; they also bear the same testimony, their eyes have {48} been quickened by the Spirit of God, and they see alike, their hearts have been quickened, and they feel and understand alike, and there are no disputations among them with regard to the doctrines of the Savior. 18:230.

Again it is asked:--"Is the Holy Ghost given in this age of the world?" Yes, but they could not send men to Joppa for Peter, for behold there was no Peter, or men possessing the holy Priesthood, to send for, neither has there been since the church lost the holy Priesthood, until it was restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Cornelius did not belong to the House of Israel, yet he received the Holy Ghost. Continue this history, and what does it give to us? It gives to us the key of knowledge with regard to receiving the Holy Ghost through the ordinances of the Gospel, that it is free to all, Jew and Gentile, as Peter exclaimed when Cornelius had related to him how he was instructed to send men to Joppa: "Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons; but in every nation, he that feareth him and worketh righteousness, is accepted of him." 10:322.

Without the power of the Holy Ghost a person is liable to go to the right or the left from the straight path of duty; they are liable to do things they are sorry for; they are liable to make mistakes; and when they try to do their best, behold they do that which they dislike. 10:289.

I want to see men and women breathe the Holy Ghost in every breath of their lives, living constantly in the light of God's countenance. 9:288-289. {49}

Chapter III

THE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN GOD AND MAN

The Spirit of God--God is here: his influence fills immensity. He has his messengers throughout all the works of his hands. He watches every one of his creatures; their acts, their affections, and thoughts are all known to him; for his intelligence and power fill immensity. Not that his person does, but his Spirit does; and he is here teaching, guiding and directing the nations of the earth. 7:159.

The Spirit of the Lord enlightens every man that comes into the world. There is no one that lives upon the earth but what is, more or less, enlightened by the Spirit of the Lord Jesus. It is said of him, that he is the light of the world. He lighteth every man that comes into the world and every person, at times, has the light of the spirit of truth upon him. 14:201.

I do not believe for one moment that there has been a man or woman upon the face of the earth, from the days of Adam to this day, who has not been enlightened, instructed, and taught by the revelations of Jesus Christ. "What! the ignorant heathen?" Yes, every human being who has possessed a sane mind. I am far from believing that the children of men have been deprived of the privilege of receiving the Spirit of the Lord to teach them right from wrong. No matter what the traditions of their fathers were, those who were honest before the Lord, and acted uprightly, according to the best knowledge they had, will have an opportunity to go into the Kingdom of God. I believe this privilege belonged to the sons and daughters of {50} Adam, and descended from him, and his children who were contemporary with him, throughout all generations. 2:139.

All who would understand the things of God must understand them by the Spirit of God. 8:115.

I will, in the commencement of my remarks, take up a subject upon which much has been said in the pulpit and in the chimney corner. It is regarding the Spirit of the Lord manifesting his will to his children. There is no doubt, if a person lives according to the revelations given to God's people, he may have the Spirit of the Lord to signify to him his will, and to guide and to direct him in the discharge of his duties, in his temporal as well as his spiritual exercises. I am satisfied, however, that in this respect, we live far beneath our privileges. If this is true, it is necessary that we become more fervent in the service of God--in living our religion--and more truthful and honest with one another, that we be not slack in the performance of any duty, but labor with a right good will for God and truth. If this people, called Latter-day Saints, live beneath their privileges in the holy Gospel of the Son of God, are they justified in every respect before him? They are not. If we do not live in the lively exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus, possessing his Spirit always, how can we know when he speaks to us through his servants whom he has placed to lead us? 12:104.

The light of the Spirit upon the hearts and understandings of some Latter-day Saints, is like the peeping of the stars through the broken shingles of the roof over our heads, when we are watching through the silent watches of the night and behold the glimmer of a twinkling star. 15:3.

No man can gain influence in this Kingdom, and maintain {51} himself in it, or magnify his calling, without the power of God being with him. Persons must so live that they can enjoy the light of the Holy Spirit, or they will have no confidence in themselves, in their religion, or in their God, and will sooner or later turn from the faith. 8:65.

You need the Spirit of the Almighty to look through a man and discern what is in his heart, while his face smiles upon you and his words flow as smoothly as oil. 3:225.

Thrust a man into prison and bind him with chains, and then let him be filled with the comfort and with the glory of eternity, and that prison is a palace to him. Again, let a man be seated upon a throne with power and dominion in this world, ruling his millions and millions and without that peace which flows from the Lord of Hosts--without that contentment and joy that comes from heaven, his palace is a prison; his life is a burden to him; he lives in fear, in dread, and in sorrow. But when a person is filled with the peace and power of God, all is right with him. 5:1-2.

There are men of talent, of thought, of reflection, and knowledge in all cunning mechanism; they are expert in that, though they do not know from whence they receive their intelligence. The Spirit of the Lord has not yet entirely done striving with the people, offering them knowledge and intelligence; consequently, it reveals unto them, instructs them, teaches them, and guides them even in the way they like to travel. Men know how to construct railroads and all manner of machinery; they understand cunning workmanship, etc.; but that is all revealed to them by the Spirit of the Lord, though they know it not. 5:124.

I rejoice in the privilege of meeting with the Saints, in hearing them speak, and in enjoying the influence that is within and around them. That influence opens to my {52} understanding the true position of those who are endeavoring to serve their God. I do not require to hear them speak to enable me to know their feelings. Is it not also your experience that, when you meet persons in the streets, in your houses, in your offices, or in your workshops, more or less of an influence attends them which conveys more than words can? By this the Father knows his children, Jesus knows his brethren, and the angels are acquainted with those who delight to associate with them and with those who hate them. This knowledge is obtained through that invisible influence which attends intelligent beings, and betrays the atmosphere in which they delight to live. 8:57.

Without the light of the Spirit of Christ, no person can truly enjoy life. 8:66.

Now, my friends, brethren and sisters, ladies and gentlemen, how do you know anything? Can you be deceived by the eye? You can, you have proved this; you all know that there are men who can deceive the sight of the eye, no matter how closely you observe their movements. Can you be deceived in hearing? Yes; you may hear sounds but not understand their import or whence they come. Can you be deceived by the touch of the finger? You can. The nervous system will not detect everything. What will? The revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ, the spirit of truth will detect everything, and enable all who possess it to understand truth from error, light from darkness, the things of God from the things not of God. It is the only thing that will enable us to understand the Gospel of the Son of God, the will of God, and how we can be saved. Follow it, and it will lead to God, the Fountain of light, where the gate will be open, and the mind will be enlightened so that we shall see, know and understand things as they are. 13:336. {53}

There is not a man upon the earth who can magnify even an earthly office, without the power and wisdom of God to aid him. 10:42.

The eloquence of angels never can convince any person that God lives and makes truth the habitation of his throne, independent of that eloquence being clothed with the power of the Holy Ghost; in the absence of this, it would be a combination of useless sounds. What is it that convinces man? It is the influence of the Almighty, enlightening his mind, giving instruction to the understanding, when that which inhabits this body, that which came from the regions of Glory, is enlightened by the influence, power and Spirit of the Father of light, it swallows up the organization which pertains to this world. 1:90.

Those who love righteousness and possess the Spirit of God, those who delight to do good can remember good. They can remember every good principle and every good act. 3:358.

What causes this people to do as they do? It is written, "But there is a spirit in man, and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding." It is a spirit that causes this people to do what they do--to leave their native countries, to leave their fathers and mothers, brethren and sisters, and take up their line of march and travel thousands of miles to this distant country; and then, when selected for missions, again to leave their fathers, mothers, and friends, and travel back to their native lands, or to some other place, wherever they are appointed to go. We cannot behold that spirit and influence with our natural eyes. The results alone are known. 8:174.

You hearken to that still small voice that whispers eternal truth, that opens the visions of eternity to you that you {54} can discern, understand and follow, and the foul spirits that throng the air, and that fill our houses if we let them in, will not have power over you. 15:7.

Every individual that lives according to the laws that the Lord has given to his people, and has received the blessings that he has in store for the faithful, should be able to know the things of God from the things which are not of God, the light from the darkness, that which comes from heaven and that which comes from somewhere else. This is the satisfaction and the consolation that the Latter-day Saints enjoy by living their religion; this is the knowledge which every one who thus lives possesses. 16:163.

Now, I ask the wise, where did you get your wisdom? Was it taught you? Yes, I say it was taught you. By your professors in college? No, it was taught you by the influence of the spirit that is in man, and the inspiration of the Spirit of God giveth it understanding; and every creature can thus add intelligence to intelligence. 13:172.

Revelation--No person can receive a knowledge of this work, except by the power of revelation. 8:315.

The spirit of revelation, even the spirit of eternal life, is within that person who lives so as to bear properly the yoke of Jesus. The heavens are open to such persons, and they see and understand things that pertain to eternity, and also the things that pertain to this earth. 8:206.

The spirit of revelation attends the Gospel, and without that spirit no man can understand it. 8:130.

Many of the first revelations given to Joseph were of a temporal character, pertaining to a literal kingdom on the earth. And most of the revelations he received in the early part of his ministry pertained to what the few around him should do in this or in that case--when and how they should {55} perform their duties; at the same time calling upon them to preach the Gospel and diffuse the spirit and principles of the Kingdom of God, that their eyes might be open to see and gather the people together that they might begin and organize a literal, temporal organization on the earth. 6:171.

How can you know the Latter-day work to be true? You can know it only by the spirit of revelation direct from heaven.

What proved this work true to you in England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, the United States, etc.? Was it not the spirit of revelation that rested upon you? Then why should you lose the spirit? You should add to it day by day; you should add as the Lord gives--a little here and a little there, and treasure up truth in your faith and understanding, until you become perfect before the Lord and are prepared to receive the further things of the Kingdom of God. 7:159-160.

This principle we are in possession of, and it should be nourished and cherished by us; it is the principle of revelation, or, if you like the term better, of foreseeing. There are those who possess fore-knowledge, who do not believe as we believe with regard to the establishment of the Kingdom of God on the earth. Take the statesman, for instance: he has a certain degree of knowledge with regard to the results of the measures which he may recommend, but does he know whence he derived that knowledge? No. He may say: "I foresee if we take this course we shall perpetuate our government and strengthen it, but if we take the opposite course we will destroy it." But can he tell whence he has received that wisdom and fore-knowledge? He cannot. Yet that is the condition of the statesmen in the nations of {56} the earth. If the philosopher can gaze into the immensity of space, and understand how to fashion and make glasses that will magnify a million times, that knowledge comes from the Fountain of knowledge. A man of the world may say: "I can foresee, I can understand, I can frame an engine, make a track, and run that engine upon it, bearing along a train of loaded cars at the rate of forty, fifty, or sixty miles an hour." Another may say: "I can take the lightning, convey it on wires, and speak to foreign nations." But where do they get this wisdom? From the same source where you and I get our wisdom and our knowledge of God and godliness. 12:112-13.

But we should all live so that the Spirit of revelation could dictate and write on the heart and tell us what we should do, instead of the traditions of our parents and teachers. But to do this we must become like little children; and Jesus says if we do not we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. How simple it is! Live free from envy, malice, wrath, strife, bitter feelings, and evil speaking in our families and about our neighbors and friends and all the inhabitants of the earth, wherever we meet them. Live so that our consciences are free, clean and clear. 14:161.

No man can know Jesus the Christ except it be revealed from heaven to him. 14:199.

No earthly argument, no earthly reasoning can open the minds of intelligent beings and show them heavenly things; that can only be done by the Spirit of revelation. 18:249.

When the Spirit of revelation from God inspires a man, his mind is opened to behold the beauty, order, and glory of the creation of this earth and its inhabitants, the object of its creation, and the purpose of its Creator in peopling it with his children. He can then clearly understand that {57} our existence here is for the sole purpose of exaltation and restoration to the presence of our Father and God, where we may progress endlessly in the power of godliness. After the mind has thus been illuminated, the ignorance and blindness of the great mass of mankind are more apparent. Yet there is no son or daughter of Adam and Eve who has not incorporated in his organization the priceless gem of endless life, for the endless duration and endless lives which they are approaching. 9:256.

Without the revelations of God we know not who we are, whence we came, nor who formed the earth on which we live, move and have our being. Did I bring the particles of matter together and form the earth? No. Did you, Mr. Philosopher? No? Did you Mr. Infidel, or you Mr. Christian, Pagan or Jew? No, not any of us. We know that we are here, but who brought us here, or how we came are questions the solution of which depends upon a power superior to ours. The ideas of the inhabitants of the earth with regard to the destiny of the earth, are very crude and vague. But we must all acknowledge that some individual, being, power or influence superior to ourselves produced us and the earth and brought us forth and holds us in existence, and causes the revolutions of the earth and of the planetary system. These are facts that neither we nor all mankind can controvert; the whole Christian and even the heathen world will acknowledge all this; but what do they know about it? Who understands the modus operandi by which all this was brought about and continued? Who is able to leap forth into the immensity of thought, space, contemplation and research, and search out the principles by which we are here and by which we are sustained? The strangest phenomenon to the inhabitants of the earth today {58} is that God, the maker and preserver of the earth and all it contains, should speak from heaven to his creatures, the works of his hands here. What would there be strange in the mechanician, after constructing the most beautiful and ingenious piece of mechanism it is possible to conceive of, speaking to it and admiring the beauty, regularity and order of its motions? Nothing whatever. Well, to me it is not at all strange that he who framed and fashioned this beautiful world and all the myriads and varieties of organizations it contains, should come and visit them; to me this is perfectly natural, and when we remember and compare the belief of this people with that of the rest of the world we need not be surprised at being considered "a strange people." 13:234.

How do we know that prophets wrote the word of the Lord? By revelation. How do we know that Joseph Smith was called of God to establish his Kingdom upon the earth? By revelation. How do we know that the leaders of this people teach the truth? By revelation. How do we know the doctrine of baptism for the remission of sins to be true? It is written in the Bible; but the Christian world deny it, because it is not manifested to them by the revelations of the Lord Jesus. 14:209.

Without revelation direct from heaven, it is impossible for any person to understand fully the plan of salvation. We often hear it said that the living oracles must be in the Church, in order that the Kingdom of God may be established and prosper on the earth. I will give another version of this sentiment. I say that the living oracles of God, or the Spirit of revelation must be in each and every individual, to know the plan of salvation and keep in the path that leads them to the presence of God. 9:279. {59}

This people believe in revelation. This people did believe and do believe that the Lord has spoken from the heavens. They did believe and do believe that God has sent angels to proclaim the everlasting Gospel, according to the testimony of John. It was this that gave rise to the malice, hatred and vindictive feelings that have been so often made manifest against them. 12:282.

When a revelation is given to any people, they must walk according to it, or suffer the penalty which is the punishment of disobedience, but when the word is, "will you do thus and so?" "it is the mind and will of God that you perform such and such a duty;" the consequences of disobedience are not so dreadful, as they would be if the word of the Lord were to be written under the declaration, "Thus saith the Lord." 12:127.

Instead of considering that there is nothing known and understood, only as we know and understand things naturally, I take the other side of the question, and believe positively that there is nothing known except by the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, whether in theology, science, or art. 12:207.

It pleases me a little to think how anxious this people are for new revelation. I wish to ask you a question: Do this people know whether they have received any revelation since the death of Joseph, as a people? I can tell you that you receive them continually. 6:282.

All the revelations of God teach simply this--son, daughter, you are the workmanship of mine hands; walk and live before me in righteousness; let your conversations be chaste; let your daily deportment be according to my law; let your dealings one with another be in justice and equity; let my character be sacred in your mouth, and do {60} not profane my holy name and trample upon my authority; do not despise any of my sayings, for I will not be disgraced. 6:284-85.

It has been observed that the people want revelation. This is a revelation; and were it written, it would then be written revelation, as truly as the revelations which are contained in the book of Doctrine and Covenants. I could give you revelation upon the subject of paying your tithing and building a temple to the name of the Lord; for the light is in me. I could put these revelations as straight to the line of truth in writing as any revelation you ever read. I could write the mind of the Lord, and you could put it in your pockets. But before we desire more written revelation, let us fulfil the revelations that are already written, and which we have scarcely begun to fulfil. 6:319.

In every part and portion of the revelations of God as given to the children of men, or to any individual in heaven or on earth, to understand them properly, a man needs the Spirit by which they were given--the Spirit that reveals such matters to the understanding, and makes them familiar to the mind. 8:27.

There are revelations, wisdom, knowledge, and understanding yet to be proclaimed. 8:59.

"Well, Brother Brigham, have you had visions?" Yes, I have. "Have you had revelations?" Yes, I have them all the time, I live constantly by the principle of revelation. I never received one iota of intelligence, from the letter A to what I now know, I mean that, from the very start of my life to this time, I have never received one particle of intelligence, only by revelation, no matter whether father or mother revealed it, or my sister, or neighbor.

No person receives knowledge, only upon the principle {61} of revelation, that is, by having something revealed to them. "Do you have the revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ?" I will leave that for others to judge. If the Lord requires anything of this people, and speaks through me, I will tell them of it; but if he does not, still we all live by the principle of revelation. Who reveals? Everybody around us; we learn of each other. I have something which you have not, and you have something which I have not; I reveal what I have to you, and you reveal what you have to me. I believe that we are revelators to each other. Are the heavens opened? Yes, to some at times, yet upon natural principles upon the principle of natural philosophy. "Do you know the will and mind of the Lord?" Yes, concerning this people, and concerning myself. Does every one of my brethren and sisters know the will of the Lord? Let me say to the Latter-day Saints, if they will take up their cross and follow the Lord Jesus Christ in the regeneration, many of them will receive more, know more, and have more of the Spirit of revelation than they are aware of; but the revelations which I receive are all upon natural principles. 3:209.

I am so far from believing that any government upon this earth has constitutions and laws that are perfect, that I do not even believe that there is a single revelation, among the many God has given to the Church, that is perfect in its fulness. The revelations of God contain correct doctrine and principle, so far as they go; but it is impossible for the poor, weak, low, grovelling, sinful inhabitants of the earth to receive a revelation from the Almighty in all its perfections. He has to speak to us in a manner to meet the extent of our capacities, as we have to do with these benighted Lamanites; it would be of no benefit to talk to them as I am now speaking to you. Before you can enter into {62} conversation with them, give them your ideas, you are under the necessity of condescending to their low estate, so far as communication is concerned, in order to exalt them. 2:314.

The construction of the electric telegraph and the method of using it enabling the people to send messages from one end of the earth to the other, is just as much a revelation from God as any ever given. The same is true with regard to making machinery, whether it be a steamboat, a carding machine, threshing machine, or anything else, it makes no difference--these things have existed from all eternity and will continue to all eternity, and the Lord has revealed them to his children. 13:305.

Many are pleading for revelations; do you suppose that Saints lack revelations? They have plenty of them, and they are stored in the archives of those who have understanding of the principles of the Priesthood, ready to be brought forth as the people need. 3:337.

Men who know nothing of the Priesthood receive revelation and prophecy, and yet these gifts belong to the Church, and those who are faithful in the Kingdom of God inherit them and are entitled to them; and all ought to live so as to enjoy the spirit of these gifts and callings continually. 11:325.

Should you receive a vision or revelation from the Almighty, one that the Lord gave you concerning yourselves, or this people, but which you are not to reveal on account of your not being the proper person, or because it ought not to be known by the people at present, you should shut it up and seal it as close, and lock it as tight as heaven is to you, and make it as secret as the grave. The Lord has no {63} confidence in those who reveal secrets, for he cannot safely reveal himself to such persons. 4:288.

Take a course to open and keep open a communication with your Elder Brother or file-leader--our Savior. Were I to draw a distinction in all the duties that are required of the children of men, from first to last, I would place first and foremost the duty of seeking unto the Lord our God until we open the path of communication from heaven to earth--from God to our own souls. Keep every avenue of your hearts clean and pure before him. 8:339.

That man who cannot know things without telling any other living being upon the earth, who cannot keep his secrets and those that God reveals to him, never can receive the voice of his Lord to dictate him and the people on this earth. 4:287.

It was asked me by a gentleman how I guided the people by revelation. I teach them to live so that the Spirit of revelation may make plain to them their duty day by day that they are able to guide themselves. To get this revelation it is necessary that the people live so that their spirits are as pure and clean as a piece of blank paper that lies on the desk before the inditer, ready to receive any mark the writer may make upon it. 11:240.

Yes, my brethren and sisters here, both men and women, have revelation, and I can say with Moses of old--"Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets." 1:242.

Angels--There is a difference of opinion as to getting the word of the Lord; but if you will read and cultivate the Spirit of God, you will understand how it is obtained. The Lord is not everywhere in person; but he has his agents speaking and acting for him. His angels, his messengers, his apostles and servants are appointed and authorized to {64} act in his name. And his servants are authorized to counsel and dictate in the greatest and what might be deemed the most trifling matters, to instruct, direct and guide his Saints. 12:245.

The Lord is here with us, not in person, but his angels are around us, and he takes cognizance of every act of the children of men, as individuals and as nations. He is here ready by his agents, the angels, and by the power of his Holy Spirit and Priesthood, which he has restored in these last days, to bring most perfect and absolute deliverance unto all who put their trust in him, when they are ready to receive it. 11:14.

When an angel is appointed to perform a duty, to go to the earth, to preach the Gospel, or to do anything for the advancement of his Father's kingdom in any part of the great domain of heaven, the vision of that angel is opened to see and understand the magnitude of the work that is expected of him to perform, and the grand results which will grow out of it. That is the reason why the angels are of one heart and of one mind, in their faithfulness and obedience to the requirements of their Father and God. They can desire and ask for nothing that will make them happy, good and great that is withheld from them; and life eternal is theirs. Why, then, should they not be of one heart and of one mind? They see alike, understand alike, and know alike, and all things are before them, and, as far as their knowledge and experience extend, they see the propriety of all the works of God, and the harmony and beauty thereof. 11:15.

What is the difference between Saints of God and an angel of God? One is clothed upon with mortality, the other has passed through mortality and has received the {65} celestial glory of our Heavenly Father, and is free from the contaminating influences of sin that we have to contend with. 19:66.

There is much in my presence besides those who sit here, if we had eyes to see the heavenly beings that are in our presence. 8:207.

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. 2:255.

Prayer--Let all persons be fervent in prayer, until they know the things of God for themselves and become certain that they are walking in the path that leads to everlasting life; then will envy, the child of ignorance, vanish and there will be no disposition in any man to place himself above another; for such a feeling meets no countenance in the order of heaven. Jesus Christ never wanted to be different from his Father. They were and are one. If a people are led by the revelations of Jesus Christ, and they are cognizant of the fact through their faithfulness, there is no fear but they will be one in Jesus Christ, and see eye to eye. 9:150.

If we draw near to him, he will draw near to us; if we seek him early, we shall find him; if we apply our minds faithfully and diligently day by day, to know and understand the mind and will of God, it is as easy as, yes, I will say easier than, it is to know the minds of each other, for to know and understand ourselves and our own being is to know and understand God and his being. 13:312.

Practice your religion today, and say your prayers faithfully. 16:28.

The duty of the Latter-day Saints is to pray without {66} ceasing, and in everything to give thanks, to acknowledge the hand of the Lord in all things, and to be subject to his requirements. 15:63.

Let every man and every woman call upon the name of the Lord, and that, too, from a pure heart, while they are at work as well as in their closet; while they are in public as well as while they are in private, asking the Father in the name of Jesus, to bless them, and to preserve and guide in, and to teach them, the way of life and salvation and to enable them so to live that they will obtain this eternal salvation that we are after. 15:63.

The Lord says, I will be sought unto by my people for the blessings that they need. And instead of our classing prayer among the duties devolving upon us as Latter-day Saints, we should live so as to deem it one of the greatest privileges accorded to us; for were it not for the efficacy of prayer what would have become of us both as a people and as individuals? 19:222.

You know that it is one peculiarity of our faith and religion never to ask the Lord to do a thing without being willing to help him all that we are able; and then the Lord will do the rest. 5:293.

I shall not ask the Lord to do what I am not willing to do. 8:143.

Do not ask God to give you knowledge, when you are confident that you will not keep and rightly improve upon that knowledge. 3:338.

I pray both for my friends and for my enemies, that, if they will not repent, the earth may be speedily emptied of the ungodly. 4:346.

If I ask him to give me wisdom concerning any requirement in life, or in regard to my own course, or that of my {67} friends, my family, my children, or those that I preside over, and get no answer from him, and then do the very best that my judgment will teach me, he is bound to own and honor that transaction, and he will do so to all intents and purposes. 3:205.

When you approach the throne of grace and petition the Father, in the name of the Savior who has redeemed the world, do you use the name as the name of a stranger? If you understand your own religion, you petition that Personage as you would one of your brethren in the flesh. Is this strange to you? It should bring near to you things that pertain to eternity, give your reflections and views a more exalted cast, stamp your daily actions with truth and honesty, and cause you to be filled with the Spirit and power of God. 7:274-5.

Your prayers cannot prevail if there is disunion among you. 5:331.

I do not know any other way for the Latter-day Saints than for every breath to be virtually a prayer for God to guide and direct his people, and that he will never suffer us to possess anything that will be an injury to us. I am satisfied that this should be the feeling of every Latter-day Saint in the world. If you are making a bargain, if you are talking in the house, visiting in the social party, going forth in the dance, every breath should virtually be a prayer that God will preserve us from sin and from the effects of sin. 10:313.

Let us be humble, fervent, submissive, yielding ourselves to the will of the Lord, and there is no danger but that we shall have his Spirit to guide us. If we will open our lips and call upon our Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, we will have the spirit of prayer. I have proved this to be {68} the best way. If we do everything in the season thereof, attending to our prayers and daily labors in their proper order and at the right time, all will go well. 13:155.

When you get up in the morning, before you suffer yourselves to eat one mouthful of food, call your wife and children together, bow down before the Lord, ask him to forgive your sins, and protect you through the day, to preserve you from temptation and all evil, to guide your steps aright, that you may do something that day that shall be beneficial to the Kingdom of God on the earth. Have you time to do this? Elders, sisters, have you time to pray? 15:36.

Say your prayers always before going to work. Never forget that. A father--the head of the family--should never miss calling his family together and dedicating himself and them to the Lord of Hosts, asking the guidance and direction of his Holy Spirit to lead them through the day--that very day. Lead us this day, guide us this day, preserve us this day, save us from sinning against thee or any being in heaven or on earth this day! If we do this every day, the last day we live we will be prepared to enjoy a higher glory. 12:261.

We may say that our work drives us and that we have not time to pray, hardly time to eat our breakfasts. Then let the breakfasts go, and pray; get down upon our knees and pray until we are filled with the spirit of peace. 10:174.

It matters not whether you or I feel like praying, when the time comes to pray, pray. If we do not feel like it, we should pray till we do. And if there is a heavy storm coming on and our hay is likely to be wet, let it come. You will find that those who wait till the Spirit-bids them pray, will never pray much on this earth. Such people would come to meeting and look at each other and then when they had {69} stayed as long as they felt inclined, address their brethren with--"Goodbye, I am going home," and then leave. But when the time comes to have prayers, let them be made, and there will be no danger. 13:155.

There are times and places when all should vocally repeat the words spoken, but in our prayer meetings and in our family circles let every heart be united with the one who takes the lead by being mouth before the Lord, and let every person mentally repeat the prayers, and all unite in whatever is asked for, and the Lord will not withhold, but will give to such persons the things which they ask for and rightly need. 3:53.

Some of the brethren come to me and say, "Brother Brigham, is it my duty to pray when I have not one particle of the spirit of prayer in me?" True, at times, men are perplexed and full of care and trouble, their ploughs and other implements are out of order, their animals have strayed and a thousand things perplex them; yet our judgment teaches us that it is our duty to pray, whether we are particularly in the spirit of praying or not. My doctrine is, it is your duty to pray; and when the time for prayer comes, John should say, "This is the place and this is the time to pray; knees bend down upon the floor, and do so at once." But John said, "I do not want to pray; I do not feel like it." Knees get down, I say; and down bend the knees, and he begins to think and reflect. Can you say anything? Can you not say, God have mercy on me a sinner? Yes, he can do this, if he can rise up and curse his neighbor for some ill deeds. Now, John, open your mouth and say, Lord, have mercy upon me. "But I do not feel the spirit of prayer." That does not excuse you, for you know what your duty is. You have a passion, a will, a temper to overcome. You {70} are subject to temptation as other men; and when you are tempted, let the judgment which God has placed within you and the intelligence he has given you by the light of the Spirit be the master in this case.

If I could not master my mouth, I would my knees, and make them bend until my mouth would speak. "But the cattle are in the corn." Let them eat; you can attend to them when you have finished praying. Let the will of man be brought into subjection to the law of Christ--to all the ordinances of the house of God. What, in his darkness and depression? Yes; for that is the time to prove whether one is a friend of God, that the confidence of the Almighty may increase in his Son. We should so live that our confidence and faith may increase in him. We must even go further than that. Let us so live that the faith and confidence of our Heavenly Father may increase towards us, until he shall know that we will be true to him under any and all circumstances and at all times. When in our darkness and temptation we are found faithful to our duty, that increases the confidence of our God in us. He sees that we will be his servants. 7:164.

If the Devil says you cannot pray when you are angry, tell him it is none of his business, and pray until that species of insanity is dispelled and serenity is restored to the mind. 10:175.

Let every Saint, when he prays, ask God for the things he needs to enable him to promote righteousness on the earth. If you do not know what to ask for, let me tell you how to pray. When you pray in secret with your families, if you do not know anything to ask for, submit yourselves to your Father in Heaven and beseech him to guide you by the inspirations of the Holy Ghost, and to guide this people, {71} and dictate the affairs of his Kingdom on the earth, and there leave it. Ask him to put you just where he wants you, and to tell you what he wants you to do, and feel that you are on hand to do it. 6:43.

When you have labored faithfully for years, you will learn this simple fact--that if your hearts are aright, and you still continue to be obedient, continue to serve God, continue to pray, the Spirit of revelation will be in you like a well of water springing up to everlasting life. Let no person give up prayer because he has not the spirit of prayer, neither let any earthly circumstance hurry you while in the performance of this important duty. By bowing down before the Lord to ask him to bless you, you will simply find this result--God will multiply blessings on you temporally and spiritually. Let a merchant, a farmer, a mechanic, any person in business, live his religion faithfully, and he need never lose one minute's sleep by thinking about his business; he need not worry in the least, but trust in God, go to sleep and rest. I say to this people--pray, and if you cannot do anything else, read a prayer aloud that your family may hear it, until you get a worshiping spirit, and are full of the riches of eternity, then you will be prepared at any time to lay hands on the sick, or to officiate in any of the ordinances of this religion. 12:103.

If I did not feel like praying, and asking my Father in Heaven to give me a morning blessing, and to preserve me and my family and the good upon the earth through the day, I should say, "Brigham, get down here on your knees, bow your body down before the throne of him who rules in the heavens, and stay there until you can feel to supplicate at that throne of grace erected for sinners." 16:28. {71}

Chapter IV

PRE-EXISTENCE; THE PLAN OF SALVATION

Time--When was there a beginning? There never was one; if there was, there will be an end; but there never was a beginning, and hence there will never be an end; that looks like eternity. When we talk about the beginning of eternity, it is rather simple conversation, and goes far beyond the capacity of man. 2:307.

Here is time, where is eternity? It is here, just as much as anywhere in all the expanse of space; a measured space of time is only a part of eternity. 3:367.

Every mind that thinks deeply upon the things of time and eternity, sees that time, which we measure by our lives, is like the stream from the mountains which gushes forth, yet we cannot tell from whence it comes, nor do we know naturally where it goeth, only it passes again into the clouds; so our lives are here, and this we are certain of. We do know that we live and that we have the power of sight. We do know and can realize that we possess the faculty of hearing. We can discern between that which we like and that which we dislike. This life that you and I possess is for eternity. Contemplate the idea of beings endowed with all the powers and faculties which we possess, becoming annihilated, passing out of existence, ceasing to be, and then try to reconcile it with our feelings and with our present lives. No intelligent person can do it. Yet it is only by the spirit of revelation that we can understand these things. By the revelations of the Lord Jesus we understand things as they were, that have been made known unto us; things that are in the life which we now enjoy, and {73} things as they will be, not to the fullest extent, but all that the Lord designs that we should understand, to make it profitable to us, in order to give us the experience necessary in this life to prepare us to enjoy eternal life hereafter. 12:111-112.

The present is that portion of time that more particularly concerns us, and the greatest and most important labor we have to perform is to cultivate ourselves. That man may know his fellow creatures, it is necessary that he should first know himself. When he thoroughly knows himself, he measurably knows God, whom to know is eternal life. 10:2.

As far as we can compare eternal things with earthly things that lie within the scope of our understanding, so far we can understand them. 10:1.

As to the word annihilate, as we understand it, there is no such principle as to put a thing which exists, entirely out of existence, so that it does not exist in any form, shape, or place whatever. It would be as reasonable to say that endless, which is synonymous to the word eternity, has both a beginning and an end. 1:352.

The Organized Universe--The creations of God--the worlds that are and the worlds that have been,--who can grasp in the vision of his mind the truth that there never has been a time when there have not been worlds like this, and that there never will be a time when there will not be worlds organized and prepared for intelligent beings to dwell upon? 8:81.

There is an eternity of matter. Astronomers estimate that there is between us and the nearest fixed star matter enough from which to organize millions of earths like this. There is an eternity of matter, and it is all acted upon and {74} filled with a portion of divinity. Matter is to exist; it cannot be annihilated. Eternity is without bounds, and is filled with matter; and there is no such place as empty space. And matter is capacitated to receive intelligence. 7:2.

Worlds are made of crude element which floats, without bounds in the eternities--in the immensity of space; an eternity of matter--no limits to it, in its natural crude state, and the power of the Almighty has this influence and wisdom--when he speaks he is obeyed, and matter comes together and is organized. 13:248.

According to all that the world has ever learned by the researches of philosophers and wise men, according to all the truths now revealed by science, philosophy and religion, qualities and attributes depend entirely upon their connection with organized matter for their development and visible manifestation. 11:121.

Man and Matter Eternal--Mankind are organized of element designed to endure to all eternity; it never had a beginning and never can have an end. There never was a time when this matter, of which you and I are composed, was not in existence, and there never can be a time when it will pass out of existence; it cannot be annihilated.

It is brought together, organized, and capacitated to receive knowledge and intelligence, to be enthroned in glory, to be made angels, Gods--beings who will hold control over the elements, and have power by their word to command the creation and redemption of worlds, or to extinguish suns by their breath, and disorganize worlds, hurling them back into their chaotic state. This is what you and I are created for. 3:356. {75}

The elements with which we are surrounded are as eternal as we are, and are loaded with supplies of every kind for the comfort and happiness of the human race. 10:3.

Earthly things will be decomposed and their reorganization will be by the power of the resurrection; then we shall begin to understand the proper use of element. 7:65.

"Immaterial substance." It is like the center of a being everywhere and his circumference nowhere, or like being seated on the top of a topless throne. These are self-confounding expressions, and there is no meaning to any of them. 16:31.

If we could so understand true philosophy as to understand our own creation, and what it is for--what design and intent the Supreme Ruler had in organizing matter and bringing it forth in the capacity that I behold you here today, we could comprehend that matter cannot be destroyed--that it is subject to organization and disorganization; and could understand that matter can be organized and brought forth into intelligence, and to possess more intelligence and to continue to increase in that intelligence; and could learn those principles that organized matter into animals, vegetables, and into intelligent beings; and could discern the Divinity acting, operating, and diffusing principles into matter to produce intelligent beings and to exalt them--to what? Happiness. Will nothing short of that fully satisfy the spirits implanted within us? No. 7:2-3.

Gold and silver are composing, and so does every other kind of metal, the same as the hair upon my head, or the wheat in the field; they do not compose as fast, but they are all the time composing or decomposing. 1:219.

There never was a time when man did not exist, and {76} there never will be a time when he will cease to exist. Eternity is without confines, and all things animate and inanimate have their existence in it. The Priesthood of God, that was given to the ancients and is given to men in the latter days, is co-equal in duration with eternity--is without beginning of days or end of life. It is unchangeable in its system of government and its Gospel of salvation. It gives to Gods and angels their supremacy and power, and offers wealth, influence, posterity, exaltations, power, glory, kingdoms and thrones, ceaseless in their duration, to all who will accept them on the terms upon which they are offered. 10:5.

The life that is within us is a part of an eternity of life, and is organized spirit, which is clothed upon by tabernacles, thereby constituting our present being, which is designed for the attainment of further intelligence. The matter composing our bodies and spirits has been organized from the eternity of matter that fills immensity. 7:285.

Man is organized and brought forth as the king of the earth, to understand, to criticise, examine, improve, manufacture, arrange, and organize the crude matter, and honor and glorify the works of God's hands. This is a wide field for the operation of man, that reaches into eternity; and it is good for mortals to search out the things of this earth. 9:242.

Man the Offspring of God--No human being has had power to organize his own existence. Then there is a greater than we. Are we our own in our bodies? Are we our own in our spirits? We are not our own. We belong to our progenitors--to our Father and our God. 8:67.

Things were first created spiritually; the Father actually begat the spirits, and they were brought forth and {77} lived with him. Then he commenced the work of creating earthly tabernacles, precisely as he had been created in this flesh himself, by partaking of the coarse material that was organized and composed this earth, until his system was charged with it, consequently the tabernacles of his children were organized from the coarse materials of this earth.

When the time came that his First-born, the Savior, should come into the world and take a tabernacle, the Father came himself and favored that Spirit with a tabernacle instead of letting any other man do it. The Savior was begotten by the Father and his Spirit, by the same Being who is the Father of our spirits, and that is all the organic difference between Jesus Christ and you and me. And a difference there is between our Father and us consists in that he has gained his exaltation, and has obtained eternal lives. The principle of eternal lives is an eternal existence, eternal duration, eternal exaltation. Endless are his kingdoms, endless his thrones and his dominions and endless are his posterity; they never will cease to multiply from this time henceforth and forever. 4:218.

I want to tell you, each and every one of you, that you are well acquainted with God our Heavenly Father, or the great Elohim. You are all well acquainted with him, for there is not a soul of you but what has lived in his house and dwelt with him year after year; and yet you are seeking to become acquainted with him, when the fact is, you have merely forgotten what you did know.

There is not a person here to-day but what is a son or a daughter of that Being. In the spirit world their spirits were first begotten and brought forth, and they lived there {78} with their parents for ages before they came here. This, perhaps, is hard for many to believe, but it is the greatest nonsense in the world not to believe it. If you do not believe it, cease to call him Father; and when you pray, pray to some other character. 4:216.

We are the sons and daughters of celestial Beings, and the germ of the Deity dwells within us. When our spirits took possession of these tabernacles, they were as pure as the angels of God, wherefore total depravity cannot be a true doctrine. 10:192.

Our spirits once dwelt in the heavens and were as pure and holy as the angels; but angels have tabernacles and spirits have none; and they come to the meanest, lowest and humblest of the human race to obtain one rather than run any risk of not doing so. I have heard that the celebrated Mr. Beecher, of Brooklyn, once said that the greatest misfortune that could ever happen to man was to be born; but I say that the greatest good fortune that ever happened or can happen to human beings is to be born on this earth, for then life and salvation are before them; then they have the privilege of overcoming death, and of treading sin and iniquity under their feet, of incorporating into their daily lives every principle of life and salvation and of dwelling eternally with the Gods. 13:145.

When we look upon the human face we look upon the image of our Father and God; there is a divinity in each person, male and female; there is the heavenly, there is the divine and with this is amalgamated the human, the earthly, the weaker portions of our nature, and it is the human that shrinks in the presence of the divine, and this accounts for our man-fearing spirit, and it is all there is of it. 9:291.

The origin of thought was planted in our organization {79} at the beginning of our being. This is not telling you how it came there, or who put it there. Thought originated with our individual being, which is organized to be as independent as any being in eternity. 2:135.

We were created upright, pure, and holy, in the image of our father and our mother, the image of our God.

Wherein do we differ? In the talents that are given us, and in our callings. We are made of the same materials; our spirits were begotten by the same parents; in the begetting of the flesh we are of the same first parents, and all the kindreds of the earth are made of one flesh; but we are different in regard to our callings. 3:365.

We have no true interest, only conjointly with our Father in Heaven. We are his children, his sons and daughters, and this should not be a mystery to this people, even though there are many who have been gathered with us but a short time. He is the God and Father of our spirits; he devised the plan that produced our tabernacles; the houses for our spirits to dwell in. 4:27.

The Spirit of Man--The spirits that live in these tabernacles were as pure as the heavens, when they entered them. They came to tabernacles that are contaminated, pertaining to the flesh, by the fall of man. The Psalmist says, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." This Scripture has established in the minds of some the doctrine of total depravity--that it is impossible for them to have one good thought, that they are altogether sinful, that there is no good, no soundness, and no spiritual health in them. This is not correct, yet we have a warfare within us. We have to contend against evil passions, or the seeds of iniquity that are sown in the flesh through the fall. The pure spirits that occupy these {80} tabernacles are operated upon, and it is the-right of him that sent them into these tabernacles to hold the pre-eminence, and to always give the Spirit of truth to influence the spirits of men, that it may triumph and reign predominantly in our tabernacles, the God and Lord of every motion. We not only have this warfare continually, day by day, within ourselves, but we also have an outside influence or pressure to resist. Both the religious and the political world have influences to contend against that very much resemble each other; they are more or less exercised, governed and controlled by surrounding influences. We, Latter-day Saints, have an influence of this kind to contend against. 10:105.

We see life spring into existence all around us. Where is its fountain? And how is it originated? It exists for a day, a night, a year, or an age, and it is gone; and who can say where? Who can tell what has become of the life that dwelt in that tabernacle, causing it to think,--that lit up the eye with living fire, and caused the mouth to utter forth wisdom? Can mortal man tell? Not unless he is inspired by the Almighty, and understands eternal things. The origin of all things is in eternity. Like a cloud passing across a clear sky--like a bird that suddenly flits across our path--like a pure gushing stream from a hidden fountain, that soon sinks in some mountain chasm, so, apparently, life flashes into this mortal existence, and passes away. 7:173.

Intelligence is given unto us to improve upon. 8:81.

The origin of thought and reflection is in ourselves. We think, because we are, and are made susceptible of external influences, and to feel our relationship to external objects. Thus thoughts of revenge, and thoughts of blessing will arise in the same mind, as it is influenced by external circumstances. 2:135. {81}

There is just as much difference in the spiritual organization, as you see in the temporal organization. You can see that eternal variety in both. 9:125.

I see a man grow up from the infant stage to be a scholar, and by and by he has an empire, and can give laws to the people, that can equalize them, and bring them to a state of happiness and excellency, and give them all the advantages that man can possess upon the earth, and make every man happy and comfortable. This is the work that we have upon our hands. Teach the people the faith of the Gospel. Teach them what God is, and what his work is, and that there never was a time such as many of our philosophers speak of, who drift back and back, and come to this theory and that theory, and go back, and back to the time when we were all reptiles. When was there a time when there was not a God? But, say they, there must have been a time. Then you declare to me, do you, that there was a time when there was no time? And this is the philosophy of a great many of the scientific in this day. They see the heavens stretched out, but they comprehend them not. And why do they not say, if there was a time when there was no time, there will be a time again when there will be no time. What a condition for man to be in! Can we look onward and upward through the immensity of space, and behold the worlds on worlds that we call stars, and imagine that they will be blotted out forever? What an idea! 19:49.

Everything in heaven, on earth, and in hell is organized for the benefit, advantage, and exaltation of intelligent beings; therefore there is nothing that is out of the pale of our faith. There is nothing, I may say, good or bad, light or darkness, truth or error, but what is to be controlled {82} by intelligent beings; and we should learn how to take into our possession every blessing and every privilege that God has put within our reach, and know how to use our time, our talents, and all our acts for the advancement of his Kingdom upon the earth. 6:145.

We are all his children. We are his sons and daughters naturally, and by the principles of eternal life. We are brethren and sisters. What is it that makes the distinctions we see in the classes of the children of men? We see the low and the degraded, like the aborigines of our country; what is the cause of their being in their present condition? It is because of the rejection by their fathers of the Gospel of the Son of God. The Gospel brings intelligence, happiness, and glory to all who obey it and live according to its precepts. It will give them intelligence that comes from God. Their minds will be open so as to understand things as they are; they will rejoice in being blessed themselves and in blessing their fellow beings, and in being prepared to re-enter the presence of the Father and the Son. This will be their delight. 13:178.

The Council in Heaven--The Council in heaven said, "Let there be an earth, and let there be a firmament above and beneath it," and it was so. They said, "Let there be heat and cold," and it was so. They said, "Let there be spring and summer, autumn and winter," and it was so. 9:254.

"Who will redeem the earth, who will go forth and make the sacrifice for the earth and all things it contains?" The Eldest Son said: "Here am I;" and then he added, "Send me." But the second one, which was "Lucifer, Son of the Morning," said, "Lord, here am I, send me, I will redeem every son and daughter of Adam and Eve that lives on the {83} earth, or that ever goes on the earth." "But," says the Father, "that will not answer at all. I give each and every individual his agency; all must use that in order to gain exaltation in my kingdom; inasmuch as they have the power of choice they must exercise that power. They are my children; the attributes which you see in me are in my children and they must use their agency. If you undertake to save all, you must save them in unrighteousness and corruption. You will be the man that will say to the thief on the cross, to the murderer on the gallows, and to him who has killed his father, mother, brothers, and sisters and little ones, 'Now, if you will say, I repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, or on the Savior of the world, you shall be saved.'" This is what all the religious sects of the day are saying now, but Jesus did not say any such thing. 13:282.

When there was rebellion in heaven, judgment was laid to the line and righteousness to the plummet, and the evil were cast out. Yet there was a portion of grace allotted to those rebellious characters.

But they must go from heaven, they could not dwell there, they must be cast down to the earth to try the sons of men, and to perform their labor in producing an opposite in all things, that the inhabitants of the earth might have the privilege of improving upon the intelligence given to them, the opportunity for overcoming evil, and for learning the principles which govern eternity, that they may be exalted therein. 3:256.

The Lord Almighty suffered this schism in heaven to see what his subjects would do preparatory to their coming to this earth. 14:93.

In regard to the battle in heaven, that Brother Truman O. Angell referred to, how much of a battle it was I have {84} forgotten. I cannot relate the principal circumstances, it is so long since it happened; but I do not think it lasted very long; for when Lucifer, the Son of the Morning, claimed the privilege of having the control of this earth, and redeeming it, a contention arose; but I do not think it took long to cast down one-third of the hosts of heaven, as it is written in the Bible. But let me tell you that it was one-third part of the spirits who were prepared to take tabernacles upon this earth, and who rebelled against the other two-thirds of the heavenly host; and they were cast down to this world. It is written that they were cast down to the earth. They were cast down to this globe--to this terra firma that you and I walk upon, and whose atmosphere we breathe. One-third part of the spirits that were prepared for this earth rebelled against Jesus Christ, and were cast down to the earth, and they have been opposed to him from that day to this, with Lucifer at their head. He is their general--Lucifer, the Son of the Morning. He was once a brilliant and influential character in heaven, and we will know more about him hereafter. 5:54-55.

From the spirit and tenor of the ancient Scriptures and revelations which we have received, it is plainly set forth that there are men pre-appointed to perform certain works in their lifetime, and bring to pass certain ends and purposes in the economy of heaven. 11:253.

Do you not think that the Lord has his eye upon a great many? There is a passage of Scripture that reads thus: "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren," etc. Whom did he not foreknow? I do not think there is anybody now on the earth, that has lived before us, or that will come after us, {85} but what he knew. He knew who would be his anointed; he had his eye upon them all the time, as he had upon Moses, Pharaoh, Abraham, Melchizedek, and Noah, who was a chosen vessel to build the ark and save a remnant from the flood. 8:229.

It is a mistaken idea that God has decreed all things whatsoever that come to pass, for the volition of the creature is as free as air. You may inquire whether we believe in foreordination; we do, as strongly as any people in the world. We believe that Jesus was foreordained before the foundations of the world were built, and his mission was appointed him in eternity to be the Savior of the world, yet when he came in the flesh he was left free to choose or refuse to obey his Father. Had he refused to obey his Father, he would have become a son of perdition. We also are free to choose or refuse the principles of eternal life. God has decreed and foreordained many things that have come to pass, and he will continue to do so; but when he decrees great blessings upon a nation or upon an individual they are decreed upon certain conditions. When he decrees great plagues and overwhelming destructions upon nations or people, those decrees come to pass because those nations and people will not forsake their wickedness and turn unto the Lord. It was decreed that Nineveh should be destroyed in forty days, but the decree was stayed on the repentance of the inhabitants of Nineveh. God rules and reigns, and has made all his children as free as himself, to choose the right or the wrong, and we shall then be judged according to our works. 10:324.

You cannot give any persons their exaltation unless they know what evil is, what sin, sorrow, and misery are, for no person could comprehend, appreciate and enjoy an exaltation {86} upon any other principle. The Devil with one-third part of the spirits of our Father's Kingdom got here before us, and we tarried there with our friends, until the time came for us to come to the earth and take tabernacles, but those spirits that revolted were forbidden ever to have tabernacles of their own. You can now comprehend how it is that they are always trying to get possession of the bodies of human beings; you read of a man's being possessed of a legion, and Mary Magdalene had seven. 3:369.

Foreordination, for instance, and free grace are both true doctrines; but they must be properly coupled together and correctly classified, so as to produce harmony between these two apparently opposite doctrines. 6:291.

The Plan of Salvation--The great plan called the plan of salvation--the system of doctrine, ideas, and practices that pertain to all the intelligence that exists in eternity. 8:32.

Elevation, exaltation and glory are the objects of the Father in peopling this earth with his progeny. 10:191.

This is the plan of salvation. Jesus will never cease his work until all are brought up to the enjoyment of a kingdom in the mansions of his Father, where there are many kingdoms and many glories, to suit the works and faithfulness of all men that have lived on the earth. Some will obey the celestial law and receive of its glory, some will abide the terrestrial and some the telestial, and others will receive no glory. 13:76.

When you understand the Gospel plan, you will comprehend that it is the most reasonable way of dealing with the human family. You will discern that purity, holiness, {87} justice, perfection, and all that adorns the character of the Deity are contributing to the salvation of men. 8:115.

Our mortal existence is a school of experience. 9:29.

Our mortal bodies are all important to us; without them we never can be glorified in the eternities that will be. We are in this state of being for the express purpose of obtaining habitations for our spirits to dwell in, that they may become personages of tabernacle. 9:286.

Our bodies are all important to us, though they may be old and withered, emaciated with toil, pain, and sickness, and our limbs bent with rheumatism, all uniting to hasten dissolution, for death is sown in our mortal bodies. The food and drink we partake of are contaminated with the seeds of death, yet we partake of them to extend our lives until our allotted work is finished, when our tabernacles, in a state of ripeness, are sown in the earth to produce immortal fruit. Yet, if we live our holy religion and let the spirit reign, it will not become dull and stupid, but as the body approaches dissolution the spirit takes a firmer hold on that enduring substance behind the veil, drawing from the depths of that eternal Fountain of Light sparkling gems of intelligence which surround the frail and sinking tabernacle with a halo of immortal wisdom. 9:288.

Until the last spirit that has been designed to come here and take a tabernacle has come upon the earth, the winding-up scene cannot come. 8:352.

Can you save all? Yes, you can save all that will be saved. If people are not saved, it is because they are not disposed to be saved. They act for themselves, and act from choice. 9:125.

The whole object of the creation of this world is to exalt the intelligencies that are placed upon it, that they may live, {88} endure, and increase for ever and ever. We are not here to quarrel and contend about the things of this world, but we are here to subdue and beautify it. Let every man and woman worship their God with all their heart. Let them pay their devotions and sacrifices to him, the Supreme, and the Author of their existence. Do all the good you can to your fellow-creatures. You are flesh of my flesh and bone of my bone. God has created of one blood all the nations and kingdoms of men that dwell upon all the face of the earth: black, white, copper-colored, or whatever their color, customs, or religion, they have all sprung from the same origin; the blood of all is from the same element. 7:290.

The Lord created you and me for the purpose of becoming Gods like himself; when we have been proved in our present capacity, and have been faithful with all things he puts into our possession.

How many will become thus privileged? Those who honor the Father and the Son; those who receive the Holy Ghost, and magnify their calling, and are found pure and holy; they shall be crowned in the presence of the Father and the Son. 43:93.

The great and grand secret of salvation, which we should continually seek to understand through our faithfulness, is the continuation of the lives. 18:260.

We are all the children of our common Father, who has placed us on the earth to prove ourselves, to govern, control, educate and sanctify ourselves, body and spirit, unto him, according to his will and pleasure. When all that class of spirits designed to take bodies upon this earth have done so, then will come the winding-up scene of this particular department of the works of God on this earth. It is his will that we should prepare ourselves to build up his {89} Kingdom, gather the House of Israel, redeem and build up Zion and Jerusalem, revolutionize the world, and bring back that which has been lost through the fall. 10:2.

The Lord has given the earth to the children of men, that by the union of mind and matter, inspired and directed by the power of eternal Priesthood, all may be made subject to the Great Supreme Ruler of the universe. 9:255.

The very laws which govern eternity are planned to sustain an eternal growth, gathering together and increasing; so that the true servant of God cannot possibly suffer loss, but will reap eternal gain, though he, for the cause of truth, is poor and needy through the whole of this short life. He has made truth his theme; and what is it? I will say it is that which endures; it is eternity, and its power is to grow, increase, and expand, adding life to life, and power to power, worlds without end. 2:129.

You may ask, "What is meted out to us?" I answer the ordinances, the sacraments that the Lord Jesus Christ instituted for the salvation of the Jews, for all the House of Israel, and then for the Gentiles. This is the Gospel--the plan of salvation the Lord has given to us. This is the Kingdom the Lord has presented to us; the same he presented to the Apostles in the days of Jesus. 3:90.

It is the wish of our Heavenly Father to bring all his children back into his presence. The spirits of all the human family dwelt with him before they took tabernacles of flesh and became subject to the fall and to sin. He is their spiritual Father, and has sent them here to be clothed with flesh, and to be subject, with their tabernacles, to the ills that afflict fallen humanity. When they have proved themselves faithful in all things, and worthy before him, they can then have the privilege of returning again to his {90} presence, with their bodies, to dwell in the abodes of the blessed. If man could have been made perfect in his double capacity of body and spirit, without passing through the ordeals of mortality, there would have been no necessity of our coming into this state of trial and suffering. Could the Lord have glorified his children in spirit, without a body like his own, he no doubt would have done so. 11:43.

We had an existence before we came into the world. Our spirits came here pure to take these tabernacles; they came to occupy them as habitations, with the understanding that all that had passed previously to our coming here should be taken away from us, that we should not know anything about it. 3:367.

The plan by which God works is rational, and meets the capacity of his children. This earth is the home he has prepared for us, and we are to prepare ourselves and our habitations for the celestial glory in store for the faithful. None will be destroyed except those who receive the oracles of truth and reject them. None are condemned except those who have the privilege of receiving the words of eternal life and refuse to receive them. 8:294.

He governs by law. He has also provided means and, in connection with the attributes he has implanted within us, has instituted ordinances which, if we will receive and improve upon, will enable us to return back into his presence. 13:171.

Is there a debt contracted between the Father and his children? There is. Our first parents transgressed the law that was given them in the garden; their eyes were opened. This created the debt. What is the nature of this debt? It is a divine debt. What will pay it? {91} I ask, Is there anything short of a divine sacrifice that can pay this debt? No; there is not.

A divine debt has been contracted by the children, and the Father demands recompense. He says to his children on this earth, who are in sin and transgression, it is impossible for you to pay this debt; I have prepared a sacrifice; I will send my Only Begotten Son to pay this divine debt. Was it necessary then that Jesus should die? Do we understand why he should sacrifice his life? The idea that the Son of God, who never committed sin, should sacrifice his life is unquestionably preposterous to the minds of many in the Christian world. But the fact exists that the Father, the Divine Father, whom we serve, the God of the Universe, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Father of our spirits, provided this sacrifice and sent his Son to die for us; and it is also a great fact that the Son came to do the will of the Father, and that he has paid the debt, in fulfilment of the Scripture which says, "He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

Is this easy to understand? It is perfectly easy to me; and my advice to those who have queries and doubts on this subject is, when they reason and philosophize upon it, not to plant their position in falsehood or argue hypothetically, but upon the facts as they exist, and they will come to the conclusion that unless God provides a Savior to pay this debt it can never be paid. Can all the wisdom of the world devise means by which we can be redeemed, and return to the presence of our Father and Elder Brother, and dwell with holy angels and celestial beings? No; it is beyond the power and wisdom of the inhabitants of the earth that now live, or that ever did or ever will live, to prepare or create a sacrifice that will pay this divine debt. But God {92} provided it, and his Son has paid it, and we, each and every one, can now receive the truth and be saved in the Kingdom of God. Is it clear and plain? It is to me, and if you have the Spirit of God, it is as plain to you as anything else in the world. 14:71.

Has the Lord cast an obstacle in the way of any individual, to deprive him of the privilege of being exalted? No, not one; but every thing that could be done has been done, every provision that could be made has been made, every law that could be instituted to encourage and elevate the people, to increase their faith, their knowledge, their understanding, and to lead them to life and salvation, the Lord has brought to this people. 4:196.

The world is before us, eternity is before us, and an inexhaustible fountain of intelligence for us to obtain. 8:8.

It seems to be absolutely necessary in the providence of him who created us, and who organized and fashioned all things according to his wisdom, that man must descend below all things. It is written of the Savior in the Bible that he descended below all things that he might ascend above all. Is it not so with every man? Certainly it is. It is fit, then, that we should descend below all things and come up gradually, and learn a little now and again, receive "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little." 15:3.

We know the design of our Father in Heaven in creating the earth and in peopling it, and bringing forth the myriads of organizations which dwell upon it. We know that all this is for his glory--to swell the eternities that are before him with intelligent beings who are capable of enjoying the height of glory. But, before we can come in possession of this, we need large experience, and its acquisition {93} is a slow process. Our lives here are for the purpose of acquiring this, and the longer we live the greater it should be. 14:229.

It has also been decreed by the Almighty that spirits, upon taking bodies, shall forget all they had known previously, or they could not have a day of trial--could not have an opportunity for proving themselves in darkness and temptation, in unbelief and wickedness, to prove themselves worthy of eternal existence. 6:333.

Recollect the saying of one of the Apostles, when speaking about getting into the kingdom of heaven, that "if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" The best man that ever lived on this earth only just made out to save himself through the grace of God. The best woman that ever lived on the earth has only just made her escape from this world to a better one, with a full assurance of enjoying the first resurrection. It requires all the atonement of Christ, the mercy of the Father, the pity of angels and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ to be with us always, and then to do the very best we possibly can, to get rid of this sin within us, so that we may escape from this world into the celestial kingdom. 11:301.

Millions of them have passed away, both in the Christian and in the heathen worlds, just as honest, virtuous and upright as any now living. The Christian world say they are lost; but the Lord will save them, or, at least, all who will receive the Gospel. The plan of salvation which Jesus has revealed, and which we preach, reaches to the lowest and most degraded of Adam's lost race. Is he going to save all in the same glory and bring all the same state of felicity? Will they who refuse to obey the Gospel of the Son of God {94} be saved and exalted in the same kingdom and glory as they who have obeyed? No, never, never! It is impossible. 13:232.

Darkness and sin were permitted to come on this earth. Man partook of the forbidden fruit in accordance with a plan devised from eternity, that mankind might be brought in contact with the principles and powers of darkness, that they might know the bitter and the sweet, the good and the evil, and be able to discern between light and darkness, to enable them to receive light continually. 7:158.

The greatest desire in the bosom of our Father Adam, or of his faithful children who are co-workers with God, our Father in Heaven, is to save the inhabitants of the earth. 8:174. {95}

Chapter V

FREE AGENCY

All rational beings have an agency of their own; and according to their own choice they will be saved or damned. 6:97.

The volition of the creature is free; this is a law of their existence and the Lord cannot violate his own law; were he to do that, he would cease to be God. He has placed life and death before his children, and it is for them to choose. If they choose life, they receive the blessing of life; if they choose death, they must abide the penalty. This is a law which has always existed from all eternity, and will continue to exist throughout all the eternities to come. Every intelligent being must have the power of choice, and God brings forth the results of the acts of his creatures to promote his Kingdom and subserve his purposes in the salvation and exaltation of his children. 11:272.

My independence is sacred to me--it is a portion of that same Deity that rules in the heavens. There is not a being upon the face of the earth who is made in the image of God, who stands erect and is organized as God is, that would be deprived of the free exercise of his agency so far as he does not infringe upon others' rights, save by good advice and a good example. 10:191.

When the Lord made man, he made him an agent accountable to his God, with liberty to act and to do as he pleases, to a certain extent, in order to prove himself. There is a law that governs man thus far; but the law of the celestial {96} kingdom, as I have frequently told you, is, and always will be, the same to all the children of Adam. 2:139.

He has given them the privilege of choosing for themselves, whether it be good or evil; but the result of our choice is still in his hand. All his children have the right of making a path for themselves, of walking to the right or to the left, of telling the truth or that which is not true. This right God has given to all people who dwell on the earth, and they can legislate and act as they please; but God holds them in his hands, and he will bring forth the results of his glory, and for the benefit of those who love and serve him, and he will make the wrath of men to praise him. All of us are in the hands of that God. 13:178.

We possess no ability; only that which is given us of God. He has endowed us with glorious faculties, with Godlike attributes like those which are incorporated in his own nature, and he has placed us upon this earth to honor them, and to sanctify ourselves and the earth preparatory to enjoying it in its celestial state. We are not, in anything, independent of God. We inherit what we possess from him. Yet it is so ordained, in the fathomless wisdom of God, that we should be agents to ourselves to choose the good or the evil, and thereby save and exalt our existence, or lose it. 10:265.

Our Father controls the results of our acts at his own pleasure, and we cannot prevent it. Man can produce and control his own acts, but he has no control over their results. God causes even the wrath of man to praise him, to redound to his glory and the salvation of his children. 8:18.

The Lord has not established laws by which I am compelled to have my shoes made in a certain style. He has never given a law to determine whether I shall have a {97} square-toed boot or a peaked-toe boot; whether I shall have a coat with the waist just under my arms, and the skirts down to my heels; or whether I shall have a coat like the one I have on. Intelligence, to a certain extent, was bestowed both upon Saint and sinner, to use independently, aside from whether they have the law of the Priesthood or not, or whether they have ever heard of it or not. 2:139.

We cannot all do just as we please, because a great many times we want to and cannot, and that is what produces misery, which is called hell. 13:33.

How far does our agency extend? There are certain bounds to it. What we have witnessed in thirty years' experience teaches us that man can appoint, but God can disappoint. Man can load his gun to shoot his neighbor, but he cannot make the ball hit him, if the Lord Almighty see fit to turn it away. He can draw the sword to hew down his fellow-man; but instead of that, he may fall upon it himself. 8:31.

There are limits to agency, and to all things and to all beings, and our agency must not infringe upon that law. A man must choose life or death, and if he chooses death he will find himself abridged, and that the agency which is given to him is so bound up that he cannot exercise it in opposition to the law, without laying himself liable to be corrected and punished by the Almighty.

A man can dispose of his agency or of his birth-right, as did Esau of old, but when disposed of, he cannot again obtain it; consequently, it behooves us to be careful, and not forfeit that agency that is given to us. The difference between the righteous and the sinner, eternal life or death, happiness or misery, is this, to those who are exalted there are no bounds or limits to their privileges, their blessings {98} have a continuation, and to their kingdoms, thrones, and dominions, principalities, and powers there is no end, but they increase through all eternity; whereas, those who reject the offer, who despise the proffered mercies of the Lord, and prepare themselves to be banished from his presence, and to become companions of the devils, have their agency abridged immediately, and bounds and limits are put to their operations. 3:267.

The Lord does not compel any person to embrace the Gospel, and I do not think he will compel them to live it after they have embraced it. 10:282.

Our religion will not permit us to command or force any man or woman to obey the Gospel we have embraced. And we are under no obligation to do this, for every creature has as good a right, according to his organization, to choose for himself as the Gods. 14:94.

Not that the diverse creeds are right, but the agency of the believers therein demands protection for them, as well as for us. 3:257.

Do you suppose that the Lord would have ever given a king to Israel, if they had not required one of his hands? No, he would have been their king and ruler, and there would have been a prophet to guide them, had it not been for their rebellion. They made choice of a king, and God gave them one in his anger.

Their rebellion against the law, the agency given to them allowing their free choice, induced them to ask for a king, and God gave them one. 3:257.

When I contemplate the endless variety in the dispositions, understandings, temperaments, countenances, and organizations of people, I am not surprised that there are those who do not understand things as I do. I expect people {99} to have their own peculiar views, forms, principles, and notions. In consequence of this great variety, we should not be astonished if all do not believe the Gospel--do not love the truth. 8:131.

It is as much my right to differ from other men, as it is theirs to differ from me, in points of doctrine and principle, when our minds cannot at once arrive at the same conclusion. I feel it sometimes very difficult indeed to word my thoughts as they exist in my own mind, which, I presume, is the grand cause of many apparent differences in sentiment which may exist among the Saints. 2:123.

I am not going to drive a man or a woman to heaven. A great many think that they will be able to flog people into heaven, but this can never be done, for the intelligence in us is as independent as the Gods. People are not to be driven, and you can put into a gnat's eye all the souls of the children of men that are driven into heaven by preaching hell-fire. 9:124.

When misuse of power has reached a certain stage, the divinity that is within the people asserts its right and they free themselves from the power of despotism. 10:191.

When the people do all they can, the Lord is bound to do the rest. 3:154.

Many are disposed through their own wickedness "to do as I damned please," and they are damned. 11:254.

When a truth is presented to an intelligent person he ought to grasp it and receive it in his faith. 8:59.

You may know whether you are led right or wrong, as well as you know the way home; for every principle God has revealed carries its own convictions of its truth to the human mind, and there is no calling of God to man on earth {100} but what brings with it the evidence of its authenticity. 9:149.

You cannot break nor destroy the will. It is influenced and controlled, more or less, by the evil that is sown in the flesh, but not in the spirit, until the body has grown to years of accountability; then evil, when listened to, begins to rule and overrule the spirit God has placed within man. 6:332.

Men should not be permitted to do as they please in all things; for there are rules regulating all good societies and the business intercourse of men with each other, which are just and righteous in themselves, the violation of which cannot be countenanced either by civil or religious usages. It is not the privilege of any man to waste the time of his employer under any pretense whatever, and the cause of religion, good government, and humanity is not in the least degree advanced by the practice, but the contrary is really the case. Men should be abridged in doing wrong; they should not be free to sin against God or against man without suffering such penalties as their sins deserve. 12:153.

Does it follow that a man is deprived of his rights, because he lists in his heart to do the will of God? Must a man swear to prove that he has an agency? I contend there is no necessity for that, nor for stealing nor for doing any wrong. I can manifest to the heavens and to the inhabitants of the earth that I am free-born, and have my liberty before God, angels and men, when I kneel down to pray, certainly as much as if I were to go out and swear. I have the right to call my family together at certain hours for prayer, and I believe that this course proves that I am a free agent, as much as if I were to steal, swear, lie, and get drunk. 10:323. {101}

We would not make everybody bow down to our religion, if we had the power; for this would not be Godlike. 14:94.

The eternal laws by which he and all others exist in the eternities of the Gods decree that the consent of the creature must be obtained before the Creator can rule perfectly. 15:134.

The Lord has a school upon the earth, and we are his scholars; and the Devil also has a school attended by a great number of scholars. While we have been learning how to sustain the Kingdom of God upon the earth, the Devil and his pupils have been learning how to sustain the kingdom of darkness. From the very nature of the two kingdoms upon one planet, the crisis must come when there will be a literal open warfare, just as much as there now is a warfare within us against evil; and if we, as individuals and as a community, have gained the victory over our passions to such a degree that our Father knows that we are capable of actually sustaining the Kingdom of God upon the earth, just so true we shall be a kingdom by ourselves. If we are not yet capable of maintaining and rightly managing that kingdom, it will not at present be given to us in the fulness thereof; but the time will come when it will be given and established in its perfect organization on the earth. 5:328.

The law of liberty is the law of right in every particular. 12:152.

There is not, has not been, and never can be any method, scheme, or plan devised by any being in this world for intelligence to exist eternally and obtain an exaltation, without knowing the good and the evil--without tasting the bitter and the sweet. Can the people understand that it is {102} actually necessary for opposite principles to be placed before them, or this state of being would be no probation, and we should have no opportunity for exercising the agency given us? Can they understand that we cannot obtain eternal life unless we actually know and comprehend by our experience the principle of good and the principle of evil, the light and the darkness, truth, virtue, and holiness,--also vice, wickedness, and corruption? We must discern and acknowledge that the providences of the Lord are over all the works of his hands--that when he produces intelligent beings he watches over them for their good. He has given human beings an intelligence designed to become eternal, self-existent, independent, and as Godlike as any being in the heavens.

To answer such design, we are given our agency--the control of our belief, and must know the darkness from the light and the light from the darkness, and must taste the bitter as well as the sweet. 7:237-238.

What would we know about heaven or happiness were it not for their opposite? 3:321.

Let the Kingdom alone, the Lord steadies the ark; and if it does jostle, and appear to need steadying, if the way is a little sideling sometimes, and to all appearance threatens its overthrow, be careful how you stretch forth your hands to steady it; let us not be too officious in meddling with that which does not concern us; let it alone, it is the Lord's work. 11:252.

Every person who will examine his own experience--who will watch closely the leading of his own desires--will learn that the very great majority prefer to do good rather than to do evil, and would pursue a correct course, were it not for the evil power that subjects them to its sway. {103} In wrong doing, their own consciences condemn them. 6:330-331.

Shall we deny the existence of that which we do not understand? If we do, we would want to keep an iron bedstead to measure every person according to our own measurements and dimensions; and if persons were too long we would cut them off, and if too short draw them out. But we should discard this principle, and our motto should be, we will let every one believe as he pleases and follow out the convictions of his own mind, for all are free to choose or refuse; they are free to serve God or to deny him. We have the Scriptures of divine truth, and we are free to believe or deny them. But we shall be brought to judgment before God for all these things, and shall have to give an account to him who has the right to call us to an account for the deeds done in the body. 14:131.

There is not an individual upon the earth but what has within himself ability to save or to destroy himself; and such is the case with nations. 5:53. {104}