_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}