the calling of christ's apostles in the last dispensation of the fullness of times—duties and powers of the twelve—their labors in the world—organization of the seventies.
and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
st. matthew.
but before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake.
and it shall turn to you for a testimony.
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and ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death,
and ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake.
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and when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
st. luke.
our lord and master had his twelve special witnesses to the world when his gospel was offered to all mankind eighteen centuries ago. and so, in the re-establishment of the church in this dispensation, twelve apostles were called and ordained to be witnesses of christ, crucified and risen, and of christ's gospel brought forth through the darkness of ages and now restored to stand forever.
the power, authority and scope of this apostleship are shown in the revelation given to the prophet in kirtland in the early part of the year 1835:
the twelve traveling counselors are called to be the twelve apostles, or special witnesses of the name of christ in all the world.
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and they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presidents [the first presidency].
the twelve are a traveling presiding high council to officiate in the name of the lord, under the direction of the presidency of the church, agreeable to the institution of heaven; to build up the church, and regulate all the affairs of the same in all nations;
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the twelve being sent out, holding the keys, to open the door by the proclamation of the gospel of jesus christ—and first unto the gentiles and then unto the jews.
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it is the duty of the twelve, also, to ordain and set in order all the other officers of the church, agreeable to the revelation.
on the sabbath day, february 8th, 1835, joseph invited brigham and joseph young to his home and listened to some of their sweetest hymns. they were always noted for the excellence of their singing; but on this occasion with such wondrous power did their voices swell that the prophet was lifted up in his soul and felt the holy spirit descending upon them. joseph had seen in vision the brethren who had died of cholera in missouri; and he related the vision to his visitors, saying: "if i get a mansion as bright as theirs, i shall ask no more." he wept at the recital, and could not speak again for some moments. when his composure returned, he told brigham that he should be one of the twelve special witnesses, and said to joseph young: "the lord has made you president of the seventies." neither of the brothers young fully understood the prophet's meaning at that time, but later they learned.
on the 14th day of february, 1835, the prophet called an assemblage at kirtland of all the men who had formed the camp of zion. he said to call this meeting he had been directed by the almighty. the elders who had passed through the trials and sufferings of the journey to zion were to be ordained to the ministry to go forth and prune the vineyard for the last time before the coming of the lord. twelve men were to be chosen as apostles to bear testimony of the name of the lord jesus and to send it abroad among all nations, kindreds, tongues and people.
under the hands of the prophet the three witnesses of the book of mormon, oliver cowdery, david whitmer and martin harris were blessed by the direction of the holy spirit to choose the twelve apostles of the church. the men thus selected were all equal in authority, but in a later time the prophet designated the order in which they should sit in council—that is, according to age the eldest first. and under this rule the first quorum of the twelve apostles of the church of jesus christ in these last days were: thomas b. marsh, david w. patten, brigham young, heber c. kimball, orson hyde, william e. mclellin, parley p. pratt, luke johnson, william smith, orson pratt, john f. boynton, and lyman e. johnson.
the apostles had their mission of salvation divinely dictated unto them. how they have fulfilled its requirements, let answer the thousands from every continent and every isle of the sea who have heard the message in their native tongues!
it was the work which was great and which conferred greatness upon those who engaged in it. the world has never understood this. to man has been attributed the success which has attended the system of religion which joseph smith was the chosen earthly instrument to found. joseph himself had a wonderful personality; and it was the custom to give him credit for the early growth of the church numerically; and to ascribe its spread and the devotion of its adherents to his individual power of attraction. but he did not so esteem himself; and the work which the apostles have performed is proof that it is the holy spirit which animates and the holy spirit which convinces.
to the twelve it was not only a call to the ministry; for some of them it was also a call to martyrdom.
of the disciples chosen then and of those since selected to keep the quorum complete, not one has escaped the afflictions of time.
with some the pains were too intense to be endured, the burdens too heavy to be borne; and they dropped aside from the on-marching ranks to find, as they hoped, repose and safety amidst the cooling shadows of that world from which they had been chosen to be special witnesses of the son of god. such are no longer his apostles.
but the others, with unshaken resoluteness, have gone forward in fulfillment of their high mission, under the scorching heat of fiery persecution. joseph is their captain and their fellow soldier in the cause of christ. with him and after him many of them have, with continuous and unyielding zeal, toiled steadily on until worn out in the performance of the duty assigned them by their master jesus; they have passed to the enjoyment of his promised rest. with him they and the other faithful apostles will stand triumphant when human time shall be no more, and when the voice of the eternal shall fill the universe with the thunder of his judgments. they shall not then be only twelve; for they who have been called of god to this holy calling and who endure faithful, though they may lay down their mortality, yet shall they not lose their apostleship; for it abideth with them in this world and in the worlds to come.
to proclaim the truth in all the earth for a witness, requires not only willingness but also numerical strength. and so the seventies were called by divine revelation. they are to preach the gospel and to be special witnesses unto the gentiles, and in all the world; they are to act in the name of the lord, under the direction of the twelve, in building up the church and regulating all the affairs of the same in all nations—first unto the gentiles and then unto the jews.
and they form a quorum equal in authority to that of the twelve * * * apostles.
on the 28th day of february, 1835, the church in council assembled began the calling of the quorum of seventies from the members of zion's camp, and this devoted organization of the seventies speedily engaged in its appointed labors.
thus was the prophet blessed with efficient aids selected by the spirit of god.
one day when joseph had assembled the elders in kirtland, soon after the establishment of the quorums of twelve and seventy, he said to them that the test had been made, the purpose of the journey to missouri was now clear, and god had chosen his twelve and seventy from a body of men who had offered their lives, and who had made as great a sacrifice as did abraham.
