doctrines of the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints: its faith and teachings.

by elder john morgan.

"search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."—john v. 39.

"to the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."—isaiah viii., 20.

we believe in god the eternal father, and in his son jesus christ, and in the holy ghost.

we believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for adam's transgression.

we believe that, through the atonement of christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.

we believe that to obtain salvation it is necessary to obey the following principles of truth.

faith.

the principle of faith is the moving cause of all action. a man must have faith to believe that god will answer his prayers before he will offer them. it requires faith to accomplish any given work to which we set our hands.

noah had faith in the promise god made to him, while the world of mankind perished through their lack of faith. faith caused noah to act, while the unbelieving people of his day, who had not faith, derided and refused to accept his testimony, and the result was that noah and his household were saved, while destruction overtook the unbelievers.

lot believed the word of the lord and fled out of sodom while the people stood still and perished.

the same results follow the acceptance or rejection of the principle in all ages of the world.

{287} "so then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of god" (rom. x., 17). "but without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to god must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (heb. xi., 6). "for unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto then.: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it" (heb. iv., 2).

repentance.

repentance we believe to be sorrow for and turning from sin, not moaning and groaning over the past and continuing the same way of living; but to quit lying, drinking, swearing, stealing, and to be honest, virtuous, charitable, forgiving, and to serve god in spirit and truth—this is repentance.

"except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (luke xiii., 3). "repent ye, and believe the gospel" (mark i., 15). "repent * * * * every one of you" (acts ii., 38). god "commandeth all men everywhere to repent" (acts xvii., 30). "wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbors * * * neither give place to the devil. let him that stole steal no more: * * * let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, * * grieve not the holy spirit of god. * * * let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice" (eph. iv., 25-31). "envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like: of the which * * they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of god" (gal. v., 21).

baptism.

the necessity for baptism was plainly taught by our saviour and the apostles. comparatively speaking, it stood in the same light to the kingdom or church of god that the oath of allegiance does to any temporal government. jesus stated to nicodemus that a man could not enter the kingdom of god without having first obeyed this ordinance.

to become a citizen of an earthly government where a person is not born so, a man is required to subscribed to a certain prescribed oath. to become a citizen of the government of god requires that a person must be baptized in water, in obedience to the command of the great head of the government, and the laws of the kingdom as they are found in the bible, the book of commandments for the church of christ.

"go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. he that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved:" (mark xvi., 15, 16). "verily, i say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of god" (john, iii., 5). "go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name {288} of the father, and of the son and of the holy ghost" (matt. xxviii., 19). "repent, and be baptized, every one of you" (acts ii., 38).

its form should be by immersion. "buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through faith" (col. ii., 12.) "were all baptized of him in the river of jordan" (matt. iii., 6; mark i., 5-9). "jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water" (matt. iii., 16; mark i., 10). "john also was baptizing in aenon near to salim, because there was much water there" (john iii., 23). "and as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, see, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? and philip said, if thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. and he answered and said, i believe that jesus christ is the son of god. and he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. and when they were come up out of the water" (acts viii., 36-39).

its object.-"john did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" (mark i., 4). "and he came into the country about jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" (luke iii., 3 ). "then peter said unto them, repent and be baptized every one of you, in the name of jesus christ, for the remission of sins" (acts ii., 38). "arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins" (acts xxii., 16).

reception of the holy ghost by the laying on of hands.

the vital importance of this ordinance seems to be entirely overlooked by the majority of the christian world, yet the most emphatic stress was placed upon it by the early teachers of christianity. it is referred to frequently by every writer in the new testament.

the nature of its workings and the manner of obtaining it were carefully dwelt upon by the various writers, and it does seem that only willful blindness could so far lead the people away from the primitive custom and practice of laying on of hands to acquire this gift.

but some may answer, "we are already in possession of the holy ghost."

we ask then, "will it do the same things it did anciently?" if not, why not? what has caused it to lose its power, and become the uncertain teacher it is to-day? for if the christian world of the present age is in possession of this blessing, why does it teach the people of one church that a certain principle is true, and the people of another church that the same principle is untrue? what of the multiplied thousands of beliefs, creeds, faiths, dogmas and doctrines that flood the land? are they all inspired by the spirit of god, the gift of the holy ghost, and sustained by the doctrines of the bible? if not, which are right and which wrong?

{289} these are questions of great importance, and should be well considered. let the word of god speak for itself in the following quotations:

"and when paul had laid his hands upon them, the holy ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues and prophesied" (acts xix., 6). "then laid they their hands on them, and they received the holy ghost. and when simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the holy ghost was given, he offered them money" (acts viii., 17-19). "neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of hands of the presbytery" (i. tim. iv., 14). "wherefore i put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of god, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands" (ii. tim. i. 6). "of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands" (heb. vi., 2). "now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, i would not have you ignorant. * * * for to one is given by the spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same spirit; to another faith by the same spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another, divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues" (see context, i. cor. xii). "our gospel came, in power * * and in the holy ghost" (i. thess. i., 5). "and ye shall receive the gift of the holy ghost" (acts ii., 38).

we here introduce the testimony of some of the christian writers who wrote immediately after the death or banishment of the apostles:

tertullian, in the second century, says: "after baptism, succeeds the laying on of hands, with prayer, calling for the holy ghost."

cyprian, writing in the third century, says: "our practice is, that those who have been baptized in to the church should be presented that by prayer and imposition of hands they may receive the holy ghost."

augustine, in the fourth century, says: "we still do what the apostles did when they laid their hands on the samaritans and called down the holy ghost upon them" (gahan's church history, page 73; mosheim's church history, volume i, page 91).

authority.

we believe that a man must be endowed with authority before god will recognize his acts as a minister of the gospel.

"ye have not chosen me, but i have chosen you and ordained you" (john xv., 16).

"for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of god spake as they were moved by the holy ghost" (ii. peter i., 21).

{290} "he that receiveth whomsoever i send receiveth me" (john xiii., 20).

"as thou has sent me into the world" (john xvii., 18).

"whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (matt. xviii., 18).

"and when they had ordained them elders in every church" (acts xiv., 23).

"how then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent? (rom. x., 14, 15).

"and no man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of god, as was aaron" (heb. v., 4).[a]

[footnote a: "is not aaron the levite thy brother? i know that he can speak well. and also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee he will be glad in his heart. and thou shalt speak unto him, and put words into his mouth: and i will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth: and will teach you what he shall do." (exodus iv., 14, 15.)]

"but though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you, than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (gal. i., 8).

these were the principles taught by the savior and his apostles, and we see no reason for their alteration and change to the present accepted ideas of the christian world; and but for

apostacy.

of the primitive christian church, they would have remained emphatically the same, with apostles, prophets, healings, gifts, tongues, etc., to the present day.

paul, by the spirit of the holy ghost, wrote to the saints, prophesying of the future. "now the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils" (i. tim., iv,1).

"and it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, with the giver of usury to him. * * * the earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant (isaiah, xxiv., 2-5).

"and he shall speak great words against the most high, and shall wear out the saints of the most high, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hands until a time and times and the dividing of them" (dan. vii., 25).

"and they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the {291} beast. * * * and it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations" (rev. xiii., 4-7).

"now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our lord jesus christ. * * * let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first" (ii. thess. ii., 1-3).

"this know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of god; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof; from such turn away" (ii. tim. iii., 1-5).

"for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (ii. tim. iv., 3, 4).

"the priests thereof teach for hire." (micah iii., 11).

from the foregoing the reader can readily see that the prophets and apostles of god were looking forward to the time when the saints would be overcome, their church broken up, their officers killed, and no one left upon the earth with authority to administer in the ordinances of the gospel. no prophets, no apostles, no gift of the holy ghost, no one to act as a mouthpiece to the children of men. only darkness and unbelief, war and bloodshed, strife and contention, division and discord, lo here and lo there.

through all the long ages, from the day when the power of a corrupt and licentious church overcame the saints of the most high, drove them into dens and caves of the mountains; caused them to wander, clothed in sheep skins and the skins of wild animals; killed the prophets of god, and drove the priesthood from the face of the earth, men, left to their own devices, went into such excesses that angels must have wept over their condition.

the laws of god were ignored, the ordinances were changed, and the everlasting covenant was broken. the "woman" (church) arrayed in purple and scarlet, drunken with the blood of the saints, mystery, babylon the great, the mother of harlots, rose up and bore universal sway; and, as time passed by, gave birth to a legion of children—churches (rev. xvii., 4-6).

"the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the away. and then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming" (ii. thess. ii., 7 8).

{292} these were the words of the great apostle; and, reader, by examining the balance of the chapter, you can form some idea of the great power that was to grow up and deceive the nations of the earth, perverting the gospel, teaching men and women that prophets and apostles were not necessary, that the gifts of the holy ghost were no longer required; until to-day warring, jarring christianity has become a spectacle to the whole world.

confusion confounded reigns supreme—wars and rumors of wars on every hand—until the heart sickens and the soul faints in contemplation of the terrible condition to which poor, suffering, deceived and misguided humanity has been brought.

the power of the evil one would seem to have obtained universal sway over the hearts of men, leading them on the broad road to destruction, with no power sufficient to stem the nightly current of sin.

restoration.

but a just god has decreed that the day should come when "righteousness shall cover the earth, as the waters cover the great deep," or in other words, "at the end of a time and times and dividing of time," he would again assert his power and authority on the earth, and bring to pass his purposes.

"and in the days of these kings shall the god of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever" (dan. ii., 44).

this prophecy of daniel affords us some conception of the power of the kingdom. by reading the entire chapter we learn that daniel's interpretation of the king's dream ended with the setting up of the kingdom of god upon the earth never more to be thrown down.

the babylonish kingdom, which flourished in the days of daniel, in the fifth and sixth centuries before christ, was succeeded by the medo-persian government from 538 to 331, b. c. the macedonian kingdom, founded by alexander the great, continued from 331 to 161, b.c.; while the roman empire succeeded the last named kingdom, from 161, b. c., to 483, a. d.

these governments successively represented the head of gold, the breast and arms of silver, the belly and thighs of brass, and the legs of iron.

now, lastly, should come the kingdoms represented by the feet and toes, or the kingdoms of to-day, partly strong and partly broken. in the days of these kings should the god of heaven set up a kingdom never more to be thrown down.

{293} "but," says one, "that was accomplished in the days of christ!"

no, certainly not; for if so, why then did he, when he instructed his disciples to pray, tell them to pray for an already accomplished fact: "our father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. thy kingdom come. thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven?" have christians throughout the world, for nearly two thousand years past, been taught to pray for the coming of an event which had already transpired?

the dividing of times has not yet come: but by turning to the book of revelation, we read how the power and authority of god, and the principles of the true and everlasting gospel were to be restored to the earth; how the kingdom spoken of by daniel, and prayed for by the disciples, was to be set up never more to be thrown down, how the kingdoms of this world were to become the kingdom of our lord and his christ; how the promise of jesus was about to be made good, that upon this rock (of revelation) would he found his church, and the gates of hell should not prevail against it, and how the saints should possess the kingdom of the most high.

john the revelator, bound and captive upon the isle of patmos, had the vision of heaven opened up to him, and he saw an angel leave the throne of god and wend his flight to this planet. a new song was being sung in heaven; the day and hour had come when the dispensation of the fullness of times was to be ushered in (eph. i., 10; matt. xxiv., 31), when god would send his angels to bring order out of chaos, system out of confusion, and gather his people (the honest-in-heart) together in one place, that they might prepare themselves to welcome the great king of the world when he should come in clouds of glory, surrounded by his angels.

"i saw," says john, "another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people saying with a loud voice, fear god, and give glory to him: for the hour of his judgment is come" (rev. xiv., 6, 7).

this, then, was how the gospel was to be restored to the earth.

"but," says the reader, "i thought the gospel was already upon the earth."

if so, what necessity was there for an angel to come from heaven with the everlasting gospel, if it was already being taught to men? and, dear reader, you can readily see that none are excepted. it was to every nation, kindred, tongue, {294} and people—proving conclusively that the gospel was not on the earth, but that the day had come when darkness covered the earth and gross darkness the people.

how must the angels around the throne have shouted for joy when the decree went forth, and the commandment was given for the initiatory steps to be taken to reclaim this planet from the grasp of "lucifer the son of the morning," and to fit and prepare it for the habitation of angels, celestialized beings and god!

how must our mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters, in the spirit world, with all the saints of by-gone ages, have rejoiced to know that the redemption of the world was nigh, and the promise of paul to the thessalonians (i., iv., 16) that "the dead in christ shall rise first," was to be made good!

reader, we now beg of you to lay aside prejudice, and to examine what follows, with an honest intention and a desire to do right; to know the will of god and to do it; for great and mighty events are daily transpiring, that were prophesied of by all the holy prophets, from the days of adam down until today.

the gospel that the angel was to bring back to the earth was for every nation.

angels have not, in times gone by, preached to or taught the masses of the people, but have delegated this power to men. so, in this instance, men became the recipients of the precious charge, the everlasting gospel.

testimony of the three witnesses.

"be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, unto whom this work [a] shall come. * * we declare with words of soberness, that an angel of god came down from heaven, and he brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the plates, and engraving thereon; and we know that it is by the grace of god the father, and our lord jesus christ, that we beheld and bear record that these things are true, and it is marvelous in our eyes, nevertheless the voice of the lord commanded us that we should bear record of it, wherefore to be obedient unto the commandments of god, we bear testimony of these things. and we know that if we are faithful in christ, we shall rid our garments of the blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat of christ, and shall dwell with him eternally in the heavens.

"oliver cowdery,

"david whitmer,

"martin harris."

[footnote a: the book of mormon.]

we have now hurriedly traced the outlines of the doctrines of jesus christ as they were in the primitive christian church; {295} the apostacy of the people from the truth, the fulfillment of the prophecies of great and mighty prophets; the building up of an apostate church, the whore of all the earth, the mother of harlots; noticing the fact that she gave birth to a numerous offspring, who, true to their born instincts, as like begets like, are to-day vigorously engaged in throwing stones at their mother church, or grandmother, as the case may be.

we have shown how the gospel was to be restored to the earth, and have given the testimony of the three witnesses to the book of mormon. we will now examine further proof relative to this remarkable proclamation.

we have seen that, so far, it has been incontestably shown that if the bible be true, in no other way than this could god's work have been brought about. we now quote from the history of joseph smith, the great latter-day prophet, seer and revelator:

"we [joseph smith and oliver cowdery] still continued the work of translation; when in the ensuing month [may, 1829,] we on a certain day went into the woods to pray, and inquire of the lord respecting baptism for the remission of sins.

"while we were thus employed, praying and calling upon the lord, a messenger from heaven descending in a cloud of light, and having laid his hands upon us, he ordained us; saying unto us—'upon you, my fellow servants, in the name of messiah, i confer the priesthood of aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins: and this shall never be taken from the earth, until the sons of levi do offer again an offering unto the lord in righteousness.'

"the messenger who visited us on this occasion, and conferred this priesthood upon us, said that his name was john, the same that is called john the baptist in the new testament; and that he acted under the direction of peter, james and john, who held the keys of the melchisedec priesthood, and who in due season visit us and confer that, the higher priesthood, upon us, which holds the keys of the laying on of hands for the gift of the holy ghost and right to all the offices in the church."

thus was the way opened up for the ushering in of the great latter-day dispensation and the fullness of the everlasting gospel.

"and as it was in the days of noah, so shall it be also in the days of the son of man" (luke xvii., 26); and as noah knew when the flood was to come, and prepared himself therefor, so the comparison would not be complete unless some knew of the second coming of the savior.

"but," says one, "of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my father only" (matt. xxiv., 36); and the same might have been said appropriately of the {296} birth of our lord two thousand years prior thereto. but as the first coming was heralded by angels who came to the shepherds upon the plains of bethlehem, and lighted the earth with their glory, singing the glad songs of "peace on earth, good will toward men," so his second coming was ushered in by visits to the earth of great and mighty angels.

john the baptist came to confer the priesthood of aaron.

peter, james and john the revelator came to confer the melchisedec priesthood.

elijah came (mal. iv., 5) to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers. (i. peter iii., 18, 19, 20; iv., 6; i. cor. xv., 19-29).

moses came to confer the keys of the gathering of the house of israel to their promised land—the carrying of the jews back to jerusalem, of the ten tribes from the north country (jer. xxxi., 8, 9; ezek. xx., 34, 35), and of the descendants of joseph (the american indians) to their possessions.

michael, or adam, came to give the authority that links the generation of men together, from the days of father adam down to to-day.

in short, all the authority necessary has been received to enable men to become co-workers with jehovah, angels and the spirits of just men made perfect, in building up an everlasting kingdom, instead of the man-made governments of today. a kingdom is to be established to which the great king shall speedily come, "in the clouds of glory," surrounded by his angels; and the saints of other days, who are singing the songs of heaven, will speedily have fulfilled the words of john, "he has made us kings and priests unto the lord our god, and we shall reign on earth."

the promise of jesus that the "meek shall inherit the earth" is coming to pass, as also the words of job: "i know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall i see god: whom i shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another" (job xix., 25-27).

all these and many more grand and glorious promises are about to be fulfilled. the decree has gone forth, god hath declared by his own mouth, and the mouths of all the holy prophets, that his power and authority over the earth will be asserted; and who is man, to contend with god?

an appeal is made to the honest in heart to heed this call—to pause, to mediate, to ask god, "who giveth to all men liberally," for wisdom to know what to do.

{297} here are evidences worthy of their attention:

the testimony of the three witnesses; the signs following the believers; the eyes of the blind opened; the ears of the deaf unstopped; the tongue of the dumb made to sing; the lame man to leap as an hart; devils cast out; unknown tongues spoken, and the interpretation thereof given by the spirit of inspiration; prophecy fulfilled, and the spirit of god making manifest to the honest in heart the great fact that god has again spoken from the heavens.

many questions are asked relative to our belief on the subject of gathering, and we again turn to the scriptures to answer the questions:

these things are not done or spoken in a dark corner, but as good men as are in existence to-day testify of them.

"and it shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain of the lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it" (isa. ii., 2-4).

"and he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly" (isa. v., 26).

"and he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of israel (not the jews alone, but all israel) and gather together the dispersed of judah from the four corners of the earth" (isa. xi., 12).

"i will cause them to return to the land that i gave to their fathers" (jer. xxx., 3).

"behold i will bring them from the north country and gather them from the coasts of the earth" (jer. xxxi., 814).

"i will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered" (ezek. xx., 34).

"i will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land" (ezek. xxxvi., 24).

"blow the trumpet, * * gather the people, * * assemble the elders (joel ii., 15, 16).

"and he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds" (matt. xxiv., 31).

"that in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth" (eph. i., 10).

"come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues" (rev. xviii., 4).

the reader asks, "what are we to come out of?"

out of "mystery, babylon the great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth" (rev. xvii., 5).

"who and what is that?"

"the waters which thou sawest where the whore (mystery, babylon) sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" (rev. xvii., 15).

{298} so out of every nation, kindred, tongue and people shall the honest in heart be gathered to a great central gathering place, to be protected while the scourges of god pass over the earth. read the following prophecy and study the signs of the times:

prophecy of joseph smith, the seer, given in 1832.

"verily thus saith the lord concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of south carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls.

"the day will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at that place.

"for behold the southern states shall be divided against the northern states, and the southern states will call on other nations, even the nation of great britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations in order to defend themselves against other nations; and thus war shall be poured out upon all nations.

"and it shall come to pass after many days slaves shall rise up against their masters, who shall be marshalled and disciplined for war.

"and it shall come to pass also, that the remnants who are left of the land will marshal themselves, and shall become exceedingly angry, and shall vex the gentiles with a sore vexation;

"and thus, with the sword and by bloodshed, the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plagues, and earthquakes, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightnings also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath and indignation and chastening hand of an almighty god, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations;

"that the cry of the saints, and the blood of the saints, shall cease to come up in the ears of the lord of sabbaoth, from the earth, to be avenged of their enemies.

"wherefore stand ye in holy places and be not moved, until the day of the lord come; for behold it cometh quickly, saith the lord. amen."

has this prophecy been fulfilled? let the people of the north and south answer the query.

let the thoughtful reader stop and reflect for a moment on the condition of affairs upon the face of the whole earth. the sword is reaping its harvest of death; nation warring against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. famine is asserting its sway and untold thousands are starving, perishing, dying for lack of food. pestilence, in all its horrid forms, stalks in the train of these dire calamities. earthquakes are making the earth to tremble. storms, whirlwinds and cyclones are sweeping away cities, towns and villages. the sea, heaving itself beyond its bounds, is thundering its testimonies into the ears of the children of men. signs in the heavens above and in the earth beneath, betoken the fact that great and mighty events are at our doors. fear has taken hold upon the hearts of the {299} strong men and the mighty men. man distrusts his fellowman. nations and people have become corrupted; fraud and speculation are sapping the vitals of the man-made governments of the earth. the people are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine that comes along, and when will the end be?

startle not, reader, for it will not be until he comes whose right is to rule and reign as king of kings. not until jesus of nazareth sets his feet upon the earth and brings order out of chaos, system out of confusion, and bids the angry waves of the sin-tossed world, "peace, be still," will there be peace among men.

"now," says one, "i understand his meaning when he said, 'i come not to bring peace, but a sword;'" but thanks be to the most high, the day is near at hand when "the meek shall inherit the earth," when sorrow and sighing shall flee away, when "the tabernacle of god," will be "with men, and he will dwell with them. * * and god shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain" (rev. xxi., 3, 4).

but oh! the woe, the want, the misery, the evils and the lamentation that will go up from the face of the earth before that day does come! all ye people of the earth, heed, oh, heed the warning voice that god sends to you and go out from the midst of babylon ere another angel shall fly through the midst of heaven saying, "babylon is fallen, is fallen."

ye saints of the living god, cease not your efforts until your feet stand in safe places, in the tops of the mountains, in the shadow of "the house of the god of jacob," where you may more fully learn of "his ways and walk in his paths;" for the day is near at hand when "the law shall go forth from zion, and the word of the lord from jerusalem" (micah iv., 2).

the time is fast approaching when the "kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our lord and his christ," and when john's prophetic vision shall be fulfilled: "and i saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and i saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of jesus, and for the word of god, * * * and they lived and reigned with christ a thousand years" (rev. xx., 4).

the time has come for the righteous-the redeemed "out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation," to be gathered out, to become kings and priests unto god, and to "reign on the earth" (rev. v., 9, 10). {300}

authority.

in brief manner this subject has been previously alluded to, but a more extended examination is deemed necessary, owing to the importance that attaches to it.

this principle enters largely into every department of man's existence upon the earth. governments are mainly founded upon it, and authority is fundamentally necessary to establish republics, empires, monarchies and principalities.

the president of the united states must first conform to certain laws and requirements before his acts as president are legal and binding upon the people; so also with all the affairs of the general government. and this is likewise true of the state officials, including the governors, judges, legislators, sheriffs, magistrates, and even the unimportant office of bailiff can only be filled by a man who has fulfilled all the requirements necessary and demanded by the law of the land.

a man who would undertake to fill one of the offices alluded to, without conforming to the law, would be counted an impostor and dealt with as the law directs.

all civilized nations recognize this principle and act accordingly. even church organizations place great stress upon the necessity that there exists for men to be ordained to their several offices; and a man, before he can legally perform, the marriage ceremony, must first conform to certain rules and laws laid down by the church authority to render the marriage legal. a lay member could not act in the capacity of an elder until authority had been granted him by those who held the power to give authority. neither could an elder fill the office of a bishop without first conforming to certain rules.

these rules are necessary to the good government of society and the people generally, and without them confusion confounded would reign supreme.

if every man who desired to act as governor was to set up his claims and be allowed to act in that capacity, there would be an end to order. so with all other offices. a few men would sustain one man, as governor, other men would sustain another man, and still other men would sustain their man, until eventually brute force would be the means whereby men would hold their offices.

this principle applies also to admitting men to be citizens of a government. a man who comes from some foreign nation and seeks to become a citizen of the united states must obtain his papers of citizenship and take the oath of allegiance. not only must he attend to these duties, but he must see that the {301} officer who signs his papers and administers the oath is a duly accredited officer of the government; otherwise his papers are worthless and he is not yet a citizen.

if these things be true as regards man's temporal affairs, how much more true are they when applied to eternal salvation.

daniel, the young hebrew prophet, had the visions of futurity opened up to him and saw the time when god would establish a kingdom upon the earth, never more to be thrown down. (dan. ii., 44; vii., 27).

many hundreds of years after daniel's day, jesus of nazareth came upon the earth and reiterated the assertion of daniel, and told his disciples to continue "unceasingly to pray for that kingdom to be set up," and through one of his apostles he revealed how the kingdom was to be established.

john the beloved disciple says: "i saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel" [or the laws of the kingdom] "to preach" [or proclaim] "unto them that dwell on the earth" (rev. xiv., 6).

it would naturally be supposed that the heavenly messenger would be endowed with authority to empower men to admit citizens into the kingdom he came to establish, and that no one could take this authority unto himself, "but he that is called of god as was aaron;" and that he who might dare to do so, without first being authorized, would render himself liable to the penalty god's law inflicts upon all impostors, usurpers and wolves in sheep's clothing generally.

"seek ye first the kingdom of god," was the command of the great king, who in the future is to rule over this kingdom. but before the reader can do so he must first find out what it is like; and in this matter we are not left in doubt, for jesus and his apostles have placed upon record the names of the officers necessary in the kingdom, the necessary laws to govern and control it, the manner of admitting citizens and, in short, all the details, so that the "wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err" in seeking to obey the command, "seek ye first the kingdom of god."

by turning to the writings of paul (i. cor. xii., 28), we find that "god hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers."

now if this is the pattern of the officers of the kingdom (church), all we have to do is to start upon our search and examine the various claims that are set up; for there are a multitude of organizations that lay claim to the title of the church or kingdom of god.

it is not necessary to hunt in the midst of the heathen and {302} pagan nations of the earth, for they lay no claim to the title, but will answer you frankly, "we know nothing of your kingdom or its officers." then let us turn to the catholic world and examine their claims. we find that they have a pope, cardinals and priests, but no apostles nor prophets, no officers to correspond with the description given by paul. next let us view the protestant denominations. go back to the earliest reformers, huss, luther, melanchthon, calvin, knox, henry viii, and wesley. examine all their organizations and we find none of them lay claim to having these officers in their churches, but, on the contrary, ignore and repudiate them by saying, "they are no longer needed."

examine all denominations, all orders, all faiths, and we find that in this respect they are deficient and lacking, while poor, weak, fallible man sets up his judgment, and by man's wisdom seeks to enter the kingdom of god.

the christian world acknowledges that it takes legal authority to make a man a citizen of any temporal government set up by man, but when it comes to the government of god, any man who sees proper to do so can set out with a new set of ideas, called a creed, and establish a church, baptize, bless the communion, and go forward in this way, ordaining men to various offices, and yet denying all the time that god has revealed anything, or bestowed any gift of authority.

are these legal officers of the kingdom of god? is the reader so far lost in the mazes of tradition as to suppose for one moment that god will recognize officers appointed in any such way, much less their acts?

but lest we do injustice to these different denominations, let us give them one more chance to prove their position correct; for we would gladly avoid seeing the whole christian world in error and transgression.

paul, the great apostle, says that god placed in the church, in addition to its officers, "miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues," and urged upon the people to seek earnestly for these gifts.

search the world over and find, if you can, an organization, other than that represented by the latter-day saints, that lays claim to and possesses these great blessings.

the christian world, having changed the order of the church of god, have lost these gifts, and in endeavoring to justify themselves, say they are no longer needed. some of them, more honorable than the rest, acknowledge the true state of affairs and confess the lamentable condition they are in.

{303} mr. wesley states that the reason the gifts are no longer in the church "is because the love of many waxed cold, and the christians had turned heathen again, and had only a dead form left" (see vol. i, sermon 94).

smith's bible dictionary (page 163) also says: "we must not expect to see the church of holy scriptures actually existing in its perfection on the earth. it is not to be found thus perfect, either in the collected fragments of christendom, or still less in any of those fragments." the names of sixty-five learned divines and biblical scholars are on the preface page, as contributors to and endorsers of this book.

dr. adam clark, in his commentaries (page 452) on the 4th chapter of ephesians, says: "all these officers and the gifts and graces conferred upon them were judged necessary by the great head of the church, for its full instruction in the important doctrines of christianity. the same officers and gifts are still necessary, and god gives them, but they do not know their places."

roger williams refused to continue as pastor over the oldest baptist church in america, on the grounds that there was "no regularly constituted church on earth, nor any person authorized to administer any church ordinance; nor can there be until new apostles are sent by the great head of the church, for whose coming i am seeking" (see picturesque america, page 502).

"till that great and notable day of the lord come, we can not, from the prophetic word, anticipate a universal return to the original gospel, or a general restoration of the kingdom of god, in its primitive form" (christianity restored, alex. campbell, page 181).

having brought forward for the consideration of the reader the foregoing points, we now proceed to examine the results that will naturally flow from this terrible situation of affairs; and while we do so, we plead with you, reader, to lay aside prejudice, and, as you value your soul's salvation, seek earnestly to know the truth; "for what doth it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"

having thrown aside the officers of the church, christianity lost its authority and could no longer administer in the ordinances of the gospel for the salvation of the souls of the children of men. instead of the officers and endowments of the kingdom or church of god, man-made doctrines and changeable creeds have been substituted, until to-day the christian world is "driven and tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine." weakness, imbecility and lack of authority are {304} written on its every movement; vice, sin and wrong-doing prosper and flourish under the very droppings of the sanctuary.

to-day one theory is taught, tomorrow another. men have "builded cisterns that will not contain water;" in short, have turned from the apostle at the head of the church, and the prophet in the church of the living god, and heaped to themselves teachers, having itching ears, who have turned the hearts of the people from the truth, and led them astray after fables, until "darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the minds of the people."

conflicting creeds and faiths fill the world with a war of words, until the hearts of honest men become sick, sick!—sick of the petty jealousies and miserable trickery of professing christianity—sending the blood-guilty murderer, with his hands reeking with the blood of his victims, from the gallows to eternal glory and the presence of deity; while an honest man, because he differs from them in belief, must be consigned to a never ending hell!

oh consistency! thy name is not modern christianity!

without apostles, without prophets, without the gifts, without authority, shorn of all thy pristine beauty and loveliness, all thy grandeur and glorious attributes; torn and divided into a multitude of fragments, continually dividing and sub-dividing, thy talk sounds like that of the scribes of old, "without authority."

and what of thy teachers? "blind leaders of the blind." prophecy foretells their doom: struggling to uphold the columns of the house of babylon, the dwelling place of "the mother of harlots," and her numerous offspring, they will be crushed in her downfall, unless they speedily repent and turn to the true and living god, be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins, and receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the holy ghost, that will "lead them into all truth, and bring to their remembrance things of the past, and show them things to come," for the promise is unto all that "the lord our god shall call." to members of churches as well as non-members—to the whole world does this proclamation come.

god has set up his kingdom, or church, upon the earth, never more to be thrown down. his duly appointed and authorized officers are ready to admit men and women as citizens of this kingdom, or church. he or she who hears the sound of this gospel and heeds it not will be under condemnation. he or she who heeds and renders obedience to it will reap life everlasting.

god will not recognize the man-made devices whereby men {305} seek to save themselves by climbing up some other way. he will repudiate the acts of unauthorized men who administer in the ordinances of the gospel; and after once this gospel comes to their ears, if they persist in their course, it will bring condemnation upon their heads. before they heard it, "they had no sin," in not obeying; now "they have no cloak for their sin," the truth having been taught.

"if any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of god, or whether i speak of my myself" (john vii., 17).

may the peaceful influence of the holy spirit be with those who desire to know the truth, and come unto god, and serve him with all their "might, mind and strength."

"as we see the infant taken away by death, so may the youth and middle-aged, as well as the infant, be suddenly called into eternity. let this, then, prove as a warning to all, not to procrastinate repentance, or wait until upon the death-bed, for it is the will of god that man should repent and serve him in health, and in the strength and power of his mind, in order to secure his blessing, and not wait until he is called to die."

—joseph smith.