HISTORY OF THE GOSPEL.
I think it proper in this chapter to give a brief history of the
gospel--for this reason: There is a very general idea existing in the
Christian world that nothing was known of the gospel of Christ--its
principles and ordinances, until the personal ministry of the Messiah
began; whereas the truth is, the plan of redemption, the gospel, was
understood in the eternal heavens before the foundations of the earth
were laid; and was revealed to the first patriarchs of the race, and
extensively preached many centuries before the coming of Messiah in the
flesh.
In proof of the statement that the plan of redemption was understood
before even the creation of the earth, I quote the words of the Lord to
Abraham: "Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences
that were organized before the world was; and among all these there
were many of the noble and great ones; and God saw these souls that
they were good, and he stood in the midst of them; and he said. These
I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and
he saw they were good. * * * And there stood one among them like unto
God, and he said unto those that were with him. We will go down, for
there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will
make an earth whereon these may dwell; and we will prove them herewith,
to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall
command them; and they who keep their first estate, shall be added
upon; and they who keep not their first estate, shall not have glory in
the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who
keep their second estate, shall have glory added upon their heads for
ever and ever."
"And the Lord said, who shall I send? And one answered like unto the
Son of Man, Here am I, send me. And another answered and said, Here am
I, send me. And the Lord said, I will send the first. And the second
was angry, and kept not his first estate, and, at that day, many
followed after him. And then the Lord said, Let us go down: and they
went down at the beginning, and they organized and formed (that is the
Gods), the heavens and the earth."[A]
[Footnote A: Pearl of Great Price, p. 41.]
This is a brief account of the controversy there was in heaven, in
respect to the plan that should be adopted for the salvation of man,
when in his second estate.
In the writings of Moses, as revealed to Joseph Smith, the matter is
made still more clear. There we have an account of Satan appearing
before Moses, and of his seeking to induce that faithful man to worship
him instead of God; but Moses rebuked him in the name of the Lord
Jesus, and afterwards the Lord appeared unto him and said: "Satan, whom
thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same
which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying, Behold
I, send me, I will be thy Son, and I will redeem all mankind, that
one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore, give
me thine honor. But, behold, my beloved Son, which was my beloved and
chosen from the beginning, said unto me, Father, thy will be done, and
the glory be thine forever. Wherefore, because Satan rebelled against
me [his plans being rejected, as we have already seen], and sought to
destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and
also that I should give unto him mine own power, by the power of mine
Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down, and he became
Satan."[B]
[Footnote B: Pearl of Great Price, p. 9.]
From this we learn the cause of Lucifer's rejection and rebellion--his
plan for man's redemption was of such a character that it would have
destroyed the agency of man, and robbed God of his honor; and because
that plan was rejected, he rebelled against God and was cast out of
heaven. This was before the creation of the earth, and this controversy
about which the rebellion took place was in relation to the plan of
salvation--the gospel.
These things were revealed to the Prophet Joseph, and they throw a
perfect flood of light upon the scriptures which refer to Christ as the
"Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,"[C] From that expression
we see that Jesus was chosen to make the atonement from the foundation
of the world, and that the gospel was understood from the beginning.
The Prophet Joseph Smith said that "at the first organization in heaven
we were all present, and saw the Savior chosen and appointed and the
plan of salvation made, and we sanctioned it."
[Footnote C: Rev. xiii: 8.]
Coming to the time when the gospel was introduced among men on this
earth, we find it began by a commandment to Adam to worship the Lord
his God, and to offer the firstlings of his flock for an offering unto
the Lord. Many days after this commandment had been given, an angel of
the Lord visited Adam and asked him why he offered up sacrifices. To
which Adam replied: "I know not, save the Lord commanded me." "And the
angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the
Only Begotten of the Father. * * * Wherefore, thou shalt do all that
thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon
God in the name of the Son forevermore. And in that day the Holy Ghost
fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying,
I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning, henceforth
and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed; and all
mankind, even as many as will."[D]
[Footnote D: Pearl of Great Price, p. 12.]
Enoch, several centuries after this, in describing these events that
occurred in the early experience of Adam, said: "He [the Lord] called
upon our father Adam by his own voice, saying, I am God: I made the
world, and men before they were in the flesh. * * * If thou wilt turn
unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy
transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine
Only Begotten Son, * * * which is Jesus Christ, the only name which
shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the
children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." * * *
And it came to pass, when the Lord had spoken with Adam, our father,
that Adam cried unto the Lord, and he was caught away by the Spirit
of the Lord, and was carried down into the water, and was laid under
the water, and was brought forth out of the water. And thus he was
baptized; and the Spirit of God descended upon him, and thus he was
born of the Spirit, and became quickened in the inner man. And he heard
a voice out of heaven, saying, "Thou art baptized with fire, and with
the Holy Ghost. This is the record of the Father, and the Son, from
henceforth and forever; and thou art after the order of him who was
without the beginning of days or end of years, from all eternity to all
eternity. Behold, thou art one in me, a Son of God; and thus may all
become my sons."[E]
[Footnote E: Pearl of Great Price, p. 17.]
The reader will here observe that the same principles and ordinances
were taught to Adam, as the means of salvation, as have been set forth
in these pages as the First Principles of the Gospel of Christ. They
continued on through the generations of the patriarchs to the days of
Noah; and from Noah through the fathers to Abraham, and from Abraham
to Moses. At least in one of the revelations of the Lord contained in
the Doctrine and Covenants, we have the continuance of the Melchisedek
Priesthood traced out through the line of the fathers from Moses to
Abraham, from Abraham to Noah, and from Noah to Adam,[F] and I see not
how this priesthood can exist among men and not the gospel: for that is
what this priesthood is for--to administer in the ordinances of the
gospel, and it is obtained through obedience to the gospel.
[Footnote F: Doc. and Cov. sec. lxxxiv.]
That the gospel was taught to Abraham and to ancient Israel is also
evident from the Jewish scriptures. Paul, in writing to the saints in
Galatia explained to them that, "The scriptures, foreseeing that God
would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel
unto Abraham, saying, in thee shall all nations be blessed,"[G] From
this then it is clear that the Gospel was taught to Abraham.
[Footnote G: Gal. iii: 8.]
The question, however, may arise, what gospel was it? Was it the same
gospel which we have seen was taught to Adam; the same that was taught
by the Messiah and his apostles? To which I reply there is but one
gospel. There never was but one plan ordained by which mankind are to
be saved; and that is denominated in the scriptures "The everlasting
gospel," to express its sameness in all generations. Such as it was
formed in the grand council of heaven, such it has remained in all
ages, and in all dispensations. It is sealed by the precious blood of
the Son of God, and like the great Lawgiver whose mind conceived it,
whose wisdom brought it into existence, it changes not, neither is
there a shadow of variableness in it.
So thoroughly imbued with this idea was the apostle Paul that he
said--in writing his epistle to the Galatians: "Though we or an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you, than that which we have
preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now
again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have
received, let him be accursed."[H] The "gospel" preached to Abraham,
was the gospel of the Son of God; there is no other.
[Footnote H: Gal. i: 8, 9.]
But I have also stated that the gospel was taught to ancient Israel in
the days of Moses; and in proof of this I offer the following:
In the third chapter of Hebrews, Paul alludes to the transgression of
ancient Israel, especially to those who, by reason of their sins, were
destroyed in the wilderness. Then, in opening the fourth chapter, he
says: "Let us therefore fear, lest a promise being left us, of entering
into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us
[the people of his day] was the gospel preached, _as well as unto them_
[meaning ancient Israel]; but the word preached did not profit them
[ancient Israel], not being mixed with faith in them that heard it."[I]
[Footnote I: Heb. iv: 1, 2.]
Paul makes a further allusion to the gospel being with the children
of Israel, in the days of Moses. Writing to the Corinthians he said:
"Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that
all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did
all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual
drink; for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and
that Rock was Christ."[J]
[Footnote J: I. Cor. x: 1-4.]
But now to return to the epistle to the Galatians, in which we learned
the gospel was taught to Abraham. After making that statement, Paul
asks the question: "Wherefore then serveth the law?" That is, if
the gospel was preached to Abraham, how came the law of Moses into
existence, why was it given to ancient Israel and binding on them? To
which the apostle replies: "It was added because of transgression, till
the seed should come to whom the promise was made. * * * Wherefore the
law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be
justified by faith."[K]
[Footnote K: Gal. iii: 19, 24.]
The matter is still more plainly set forth in the Doctrine and
Covenants. In speaking of the priesthood and the ordinances belonging
thereto--through which ordinances "the power of godliness is
manifest; and without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of
the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in
the flesh; for without this"--that is without the priesthood and
its ordinances--"no man can see the face of God even the Father and
live."[L] The Lord says: "Now this Moses plainly taught to the children
of Israel in the wilderness, and sought diligently to sanctify his
people that they might behold the face of God: but they hardened their
hearts, and could not endure his presence, therefore the Lord in his
wrath (for his anger was kindled against them) swore that they should
not enter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the
fullness of his glory. Therefore he took Moses out of their midst,
and the holy priesthood also; and the lesser priesthood continued,
which priesthood holdeth the key of the ministering of angels and the
preparatory gospel; which gospel is the gospel of repentance and of
baptism, and the remission of sins, and the law of carnal commandments,
which the Lord in his wrath caused to continue with the house of Aaron
among the children of Israel until John."[M]
[Footnote L: Doc. and Cov., sec. lxxxiv: 21, 22.]
[Footnote M: Doc. and Cov., sec. lxxxiv: 19, 27.]
The above is confirmed by the Jewish scriptures also; for it is written
in the concluding chapter of Deuteronomy--"There arose not a prophet
since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, in
all the signs and the wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land
of Egypt."[N]
[Footnote N: Deut. xxxiv: 10-12.]
Of the things we have spoken respecting the gospel being presented to
Israel, this is the sum: The Lord gave them the gospel, but because
they would not observe its sacred requirements, he took it, that is
in its fullness, from among them, and also the higher or Melchisedek
Priesthood; but left them the lesser or Aaronic Priesthood, and to the
part of the gospel which remained, _viz_., repentance and baptism for the
remission of sins, was added the law of carnal commandments, which was
to educate them for the fullness of the gospel when Messiah should come
with it. At the appointed time Messiah came and taught the gospel of
the kingdom; and though the Jews as a nation rejected him, and their
Sanhedrin sentenced him to death, yet a few received his teachings,
and among them the Lord Jesus organized His church, established his
priesthood and gave to his servants a commandment to go and teach all
nations.
They were faithful in discharging their commission, and many received
their testimony and obeyed the gospel. Satan, however, working in
the hearts of the disobedient, stirred them up to anger against the
saints of God, and they were persecuted, imprisoned, and slain. All
the apostles, save John, sealed their testimony with their blood, and
thousands of their followers were put to death. Edicts the most cruel
and heartless were formulated against them by the Roman emperors, and
executed with relentless vindictiveness, until the saints of God were
well nigh destroyed.[O]
[Footnote O: See Outlines of Ecclesiastical History, part II., "The
apostasy."]
Meantime heresies crept into the churches; false teachers arose
teaching perverse doctrines to draw away disciples after them;
the Gospel was perverted, the laws thereof were transgressed, the
ordinances were changed, the covenant was broken, until scarcely a
vestige of the gospel as delivered to men by the Son of God and his
authorized servants remained.
After the sword, the prison, the rack, and the flame in the hands of
a powerful, pagan government, together with apostate influences and
false teachers had done what they could to break down or corrupt the
church of Christ, then another evil, more dangerous than all that had
gone before was brought to bear upon it. A Roman Emperor, Constantine,
was converted to the "Christian religion"--yet by that time, 313 A.
D., no more like the religion of Christ than dim, misty twilight
is like the glorious light of the noon-day sun. He soon loaded the
bishops with new honors, dignities and powers. The churches were made
wealthy, and luxurious living succeeded the simplicity in the manner
of life characteristic of earlier times among the followers of Christ.
This luxury, ever more dangerous than storms or quicksands, poverty
or chains, proved more disastrous to the church, more fruitful in its
corruptions of the Gospel than the storms of persecution which had
beaten upon it from its inception.
Through these combined evils that I have very briefly enumerated, the
gospel was corrupted, the authority of God, the priesthood, was taken
from among men; and then followed long ages of spiritual darkness
and wickedness. At last, however, the time came to usher in the
dispensation of the fullness of times, in which all things in Christ,
both things which are in heaven and things which are in earth, are
to be gathered in one, and the work of the Father pertaining to the
salvation of this creation, the earth, and those who inhabit it, is to
be consummated.
To open up this work a prophet was raised up in the person of Joseph
Smith, and to him the Lord revealed his purposes; telling him also
that the creeds of men were an abomination in his sight; that men were
drawing near to him with their lips but their hearts were far from him;
that they taught for doctrine the commandments of men, "having a form
of godliness but denying the power thereof."[P]
[Footnote P: Pearl of Great Price, p 57.]
After this the angel Moroni was sent to reveal the Book of Mormon;
and as it contained an account of the gospel as it was taught to the
ancient Nephites on the western hemisphere by the Messiah, and the
prophets and apostles authorized to teach in his name; and as this
record had been preserved for generations from the hands of wicked men,
and has never been corrupted, it contains the fullness of the gospel in
its plainness.
While this Nephite record was in course of translation the Lord sent
John the Baptist, as already stated in the chapter on authority, to
restore the Aaronic Priesthood; afterwards Peter, James and John
came and restored the Melchisedek Priesthood, and by the authority
which these priesthoods conferred upon him, and under the direction
of the Almighty, the Prophet Joseph Smith organized the church, and
ordained men and sent them out to preach the gospel in all the world,
as a witness that the end was near. For more than fifty years has
this proclamation been sounded among the nations, and thousands have
been gathered to the place appointed for the saints to assemble and
prepare for the glorious coming of the Messiah. The work has met
storms of opposition from the press, pulpit and Congress. Ridicule
and the violence of mobs have assailed it; drivings, confiscations of
property, imprisonment, and banishment have at various times conspired
to dishearten those who have accepted it. But in spite of pulpit,
press and Congress; in spite of ridicule, the violence of mobs, unjust
imprisonment, schemes of confiscation and drivings, the church of
Christ moves steadily on to the fulfillment of its high destiny, and
the gospel is being preached in all the world.