Discourse 1889-03-03 [D-133]

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President Wilford Woodruff.

Brother Cannon has touched upon some very important principles here tonight regarding the Holy Priesthood, and I feel disposed to make a few remarks upon some things connected therewith.

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In the first place, I will say that the Prophet Joseph taught us that Father Adam was the first man on the earth to whom God gave the keys of the Everlasting Priesthood. He held the keys of the Presidency, and was the first man who did hold them. Noah stood next to him. These keys were given to Noah, he being the father of all living in his day, as Adam was in his day. [##Doctrine and Covenants 107:40-52##] These two men were the first who received the Priesthood in the eternal worlds, before the worlds were formed. They were the first who received the Everlasting Priesthood or Presidency on the earth. Father Adam stands at the head, so far as this world is concerned. Of course, Jesus Christ is the Great High Priest of the salvation of the human family. But Adam holds those keys in the world today; he will hold them to the endless ages of eternity. And Noah, and every man who has ever held or will hold the keys of Presidency of the Kingdom of God, from that day until the scene is wound up, will have to stand before Father Adam and give an account of the keys of that Priesthood, as we all will have to give an account unto the Lord, of the principles that we have received, when our work is done in the flesh.

Brother Cannon has given my mind with regard to Joseph Smith. I look upon Joseph Smith as the greatest Prophet that ever breathed the breath of life, excepting Jesus Christ. Father Adam, as I have said, stands at the head; but Joseph Smith was reserved to lay the foundation of this great Kingdom and dispensation of salvation to the whole human family in these last days, to build up Zion, to establish God's Kingdom, and to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. He held those keys. Brother Cannon has told you the truth. No other man held those keys while he lived. After him, as has been said, came Brother Brigham. I have traveled with Joseph Smith thousands of miles. There are some here tonight who were in Zion's Camp. He was a boy, in one sense of the word. He was but a young man when he was martyred and passed into the presence of God. His days were comparatively few. But he was a great man. He lived a long life for a few days. He performed an almighty work—as great a work as any man, save Jesus Christ, that ever lived on the earth. We knew him. We knew the Apostles. We knew Brother Brigham; he was a glazier and painter, and, in one sense of the word, an illiterate man. But God raised him up to do a great work and to follow in the channel of Joseph Smith. He magnified his calling. He led this people to these mountains, and he built up this country almost from one end of it to the other, by his counsel. The Lord took him to Himself. Brother Taylor followed, until he was taken away.

Now, all of these men were what the world would call weak instruments in the hands of God. I have been asked the question many times, "Why did the Lord choose Joseph Smith to bring forth the Book of Mormon and to lay the foundation of this great Kingdom here on the earth? Why didn't He choose Dr. Haws, Dr. Porter, Mr. Beecher, or some great man?" I have never had but one answer in my life to all such men, and that is, "The Lord could not do anything with them, because of their unbelief, and their unwillingness to acknowledge His hand in all things." That is the reason the Lord has chosen weak instruments to do His work. And I will say here, if any of you want a weaker instrument than Wilford Woodruff to hold the keys of the Kingdom of God, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves. The Lord, however, is just as able to inspire me, or Brother Cannon, or any other man, when the time comes, as He has inspired other men in past ages. I know what the will of God is concerning this people, and if they will take the counsel we give them, all will be well with them.

Now, I want to make a few remarks concerning myself. I never like to do this; but I want to give you a little of my experience in a few things, and I want to tell you where my strength lies, and the greatest evidence that any Elder of Israel can have, ever did have, or ever will have on the face of the earth with regard to the work of God.

Speaking of the administration of angels. I never asked the Lord in my life to send me an angel or to show me any miracle. I wanted the Gospel of Christ; and the first sermon I ever heard preached in this Church I had a testimony for myself that it was the Gospel of Christ. I had a testimony to satisfy myself when I was baptized. I had been looking, praying, hungering and thirsting to find some man on the face of the earth who had the Priesthood, and who could teach me the Gospel. When I heard this sermon, I knew the voice; I knew the shepherd; I knew it was true. And from that day until this, I have never seen one moment in my life that I have ever had doubts with regard to it. I have never had any trial in this Church with regard to my faith. My trials have been of another nature. I have had the administration of angels in my day and time, though I never prayed for an angel. I have had, in several instances, the administration of holy messengers. In 1835, at Brother A. O. Smoot's mother's house in Kentucky, I received a letter one day from Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, requesting me to stay in Kentucky and Tennessee and take charge of the Church there. He wanted David Patten and Warren Parrish to go to Kirtland to receive their endowments. Joseph said in that letter: "You shall lose no blessing by pursuing this course." That letter was a great joy, a great comfort and consolation to me. I had traveled with Joseph Smith to Missouri. I had been acquainted with him, and I knew he was a Prophet of God. In the evening of that day I went into a little back room, in which was a small settee. I was alone. I was overwhe[lm]ed with joy and consolation at the letter I had received and the encouraging words it contained. I knelt down and prayed. I arose from my knees and sat down. The room was filled with light. A messenger came to me. We had a long conversation. He laid before me as if in a panorama, the signs of the last days, and told me what was coming to pass. I saw the sun turned to darkness, the moon to blood, the stars fall from heaven. I saw the resurrection day. I saw armies of men in the first resurrection, clothed with the robes of the Holy Priesthood. I saw the second resurrection. I saw a great many signs that were presented before me. by this personage; and among the rest, there were seven lions, as of burning brass, set in the heavens. He says, "That is one of the signs that will appear in the heavens before the coming of the Son of Man. It is a sign of the various dispensations."

Now, had I been an artist, on the next day I could have sat down at my table and drawn, as clearly as though I had studied them all my life, everything I saw. I went to meeting the next day, with Brother Smoot. I hardly knew where I was. I did not comprehend a being, scarcely. I was entirely overwhelmed with what I had seen the night before.

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Some of you have read the history of the power of the devil in England, when the fallen angels that are upon the earth made war upon Brother Kimball, Brother Hyde, Brother Fielding and Brother Russell, who had all they could do to live in the midst of that kind of warfare. These evil spirits knocked down Brother Russell and Brother Hyde. They didn't Brother Kimball; but that power fell upon him. His eyes were opened. He saw the spirits before him; he saw what kind of beings they were. They gnashed their teeth; they were mad; they wanted to destroy the lives of the brethren. These men held the Priesthood. Brother Kimball held the keys of the Priesthood, so far as England was concerned. These spirits had not, therefore, the power to destroy them.

Brother Kimball, Brother George A. Smith and myself had a similar experience in London, at a house where we were stopping. It seemed as if there were legions of spirits there. They sought our destruction; and on one occasion, after Brother Kimball had left, these powers of darkness fell upon us to destroy our lives, and both Brother Smith and myself would have been killed, apparently, had not three holy messengers come into the room and filled the room with light. They were dressed in temple clothing. They laid their hands upon our heads and we were delivered, and that power was broken, so far as we were concerned. Why did the Lord send these men to us? Because we could not have lived without it; and, as a general thing, angels do not administer to anybody on the earth unless it is to preserve the lives of good men, or to bring the Gospel, or perform a work that men cannot do for themselves. That is the reason Moroni and other angels of God visited and taught Joseph Smith. They quoted to him whole chapters in the Bible—in Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel—and told him what must come to pass in the last days. [##Joseph Smith-History 1:30-47##] It was necessary for these angels to give him the Priesthood. There was no mystery at all with regard to what was taught him. He knew it was of God. These very principles sustained Joseph Smith from the hour the Gospel was delivered to him until he sealed his testimony with his blood.

Now, I have had all these testimonies, and they are true. But with all these, I have never had any testimony since I have been in the flesh, that has been greater than the testimony of the Holy Ghost. That is the strongest testimony that can be given to me or to any man in the flesh. Now, every man has a right to that, and when he obtains it, it is a living witness to him. It deceives no man, and never has. Lucifer may appear to man in the capacity of an angel of light; but there is no deception with the Holy Ghost. We do not particularly need the administration of angels unless we are in a condition similar to that in which Brother Kimball, Brother Smith and myself were placed, when we could not save our lives without them.

I say to you, as Brother Cannon has, the Kingdom of God is here. The Priesthood is here. The keys of the Kingdom of God are here. They will remain here. It makes no difference whether Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, or anybody else, remain; while these keys are here we have a right to know the mind and will of God; and when we do our duty, when we live our religion, we shall have these principles manifested to us. I know what awaits this nation. I know what awaits the Latter-day Saints. Many things have been shown to me by vision and by revelation. I know that the Latter-day Saints have need to repent of all their darkness, all their unbelief and all their disunion that they have in Zion. Our power, our salvation, our exaltation, our redemption, our glory and our preparation for the coming of the Son of Man, depend entirely upon our own acts. As was said today, if we are not united, we shall be chastised by the power of God. But the Lord said: "Fear not, little flock, the kingdom is yours until I come." [##Doctrine and Covenants 35:27##] No matter if earth and hell combine against us, we are in His hands, and He has said that He will guide and direct the affairs of the Kingdom. The Lord is no different today from what He was in the days of Adam, of Enoch, of Christ, of Joseph, of Brigham. The Latterday Saints should seek for the Spirit of God. We have great power and great blessings given unto us. As has been said here, look at our condition today, and compare it with what it has been in years past. Some of you were acquainted with our former condition. Here is Brother Philo Dibble. He was in Jackson County. He was shot through the body; but his life was preserved by the power of God. We were driven away; our property was burned and destroyed. The Lord told us to importune at the feet of the Judge and the Governor, and if they did not heed us, to importune at the feet of the President. And if the President would not heed us, then the Lord would come forth out of His hiding place, "and in His fury vex the nation, and in His hot displeasure and in His fierce anger, in His time, will cut off those wicked, unfaithful and unjust stewards, and appoint them their portion among hypocrites and unbelievers, even in outer darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth." [##Doctrine and Covenants 101:86-91##] Do you think the Lord told the truth? Yes, He did; and not one jot or tittle will fall unfulfilled. If our nation does not give us our rights; if they continue to oppress and persecute us, these things are in the hands of God. More than 50 years ago the Prophet Joseph received a revelation which said: "Behold, verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the field." [##Doctrine and Covenants 86:5##] These angels wanted to go and reap down the earth. But the Lord said in effect, "No; wait till the earth is warned; wait till the nations of the earth have the Gospel of Christ preached unto them; wait till they have a chance to repent and receive the Gospel, if they will. When this is done, then you may go down."

Brethren, the heavens are full of judgment. And as the Lord told the people at the commencement of this work, "If the nation will repent, if they will obey my law and keep my commandments, I, the Lord, will save these judgments; otherwise they shall be poured out, as I, the Lord, have spoken." These things are true. The judgments of God will increase from this hour, until the land is deluged in blood. War will overtake our nation. The civil war, the war between the North and the South, which laid in the dust nearly a million of men and cost the nation many hundred millions of dollars, was only the beginning of suffering. Had this nation listened to the counsels of Joseph Smith and heeded them, this war and the terrible suffering which it entailed would have been avoided. But the judgments of the Lord are not yet ended. He is going to fulfill His work.

Now, my object, and your object, is—at least it should be—to try to do our duty. I have got to meet the Apostles; I have got to meet the El-

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ders of Israel; I have got to meet Father Adam, in the Kingdom of God in the heavens; and we have all got to give an account to him, as our Great Progenitor and the first man who held the keys of the Priesthood on the earth. When I go there and meet him, I shall have to render an account of what I do here. The Lord has chosen the weak things of the world to do His work. But He is as able to teach me, or any of my brethren, as He ever has been in any age of the world. He has always selected the weak things. Take Moses in leading the children of Israel. Moses said he was slow of speech, and he thought that he could not do anything. But the Lord said he would raise up a spokesman for him. When the Lord wanted a king for Israel, he chose David, the son of Jesse, who was herding sheep. All the sons of Jesse, except David, were brought before the Prophet; but Samuel would not anoint either of them. He asked Jesse if he had any more sons. Jesse said, Yes; there is a little fellow down here taking care of the sheep. The Prophet wanted to see him. When he came, Samuel anointed him king of Israel. [##1 Samuel 16:2-13##] So in the days of the Apostles. Who were they? Illiterate fishermen. So it is today. Begin with Joseph Smith and take the whole of us. Who are we? We are poor, weak worms of the dust. But the Lord has chosen us because He thought He could do something with us. I hope He can. I suppose I have held the Apostleship longer than any man that has been on the face of the earth in these last days. Should I boast over this or be proud and exalted because I have held the Priesthood so long? If I did, I should be a very foolish man. We are obliged to honor God; we are obliged to acknowledge the hand of God. The devil has sought to destroy me from the time I was born until the present day. But the Lord has always been on my right hand and saved me. There have been two powers at work—one to destroy me, the other to save me. And I am here today, a weak instrument in the hands of God. But, as God lives, if He will tell me what my duty is, I am going to do it!

I pray God to bless us, and awaken us that we may see our position on the earth. The eyes of all heaven are over us. The Father, the Savior, Father Adam, the Patriarchs, the Prophets, and all the Apostles who have lived in our day and generation, are watching over us, and waiting for us to do our duty; and when we perform that, the judgments of God will be manifest in the earth. I pray God to give us wisdom, and to help us to be humble, faithful, meek and lowly of heart. Look at the purity of the Savior, from the manger to the grave, and where is there a man on the face of the earth that can feel anything like exaltation or glory? I have seen Oliver Cowdery when it seemed as though the earth trembled under his feet. I never heard a man bear a stronger testimony than he did when under the influence of the Spirit. But the moment he left the kingdom of God, that moment his power fell like lightning from heaven. He was shorn of his strength, like Samson in the lap of Delilah. [##Judges 16:15-19##] He lost the power and testimony which he had enjoyed, and he never recovered it again in its fulness while in the flesh, although he died in the Church. It does not pay a man to sin or to do wrong. Brother Cannon spoke about difficulties between ourselves. What business have we to go to law because of a little water or anything else on the earth? When we do this we have lost the Spirit of the Gospel. You have had good counsel with regard to this, and if you carry it out the blessings of the Lord will attend you. I hope the people of Provo will look to this. We should be united and stand together in the midst of the opposition that we will have to meet. I hope this power and influence will dwell in this county and throughout these mountains of Israel, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen.

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