Show DISCOURSE by Dit icHAm tabernacle june ard 3rd 1835 1855 BT BY C D WATT the blemings ble bie sings bestowed upon the saints are in many instances considered sacrifices and for this rea reason s oil I 1 have concluded to say a few words upon the law of consecration surplus property and tithing the law of consecration was revealed previous to the breth brith rens going to jackson county or about the time they went after they left jackson county and prid went to caldwell inasmuch us Ps the people did not understand why they should be called upon to conse consecrate crate crute for if it a man possessed more than he needed the tha lord was welcome to it anyhow but if a man did not possess more than he lie really thought 7 lie he needed they concluded there should be no such law as the law of consecration se or the law of tithing and in ili consequence of many questions being asked upon upon the subject a revelation was given after the prophet had cried unto the lord abing aying Is 0 lord show unto thy servant how much of df the property of thy people thou lion dost require for tithing this revelation was given in I 1 february 1831 and I 1 will read a part apart ot of it commencing at the tile ath eill para paragraph raph if thou thoa lovest me thou shat serve me and ad keep all my commandments and behold thou wilt remember the poor and conse consecrate crat of thy properties for their support that thit which thou hast to impart unto them with a covenant and a deed which cannot be broken and inasmuch ss as ye yo impart of your substance unto the poor ye will wiil do it unto me and they shall be laid before the bishop of my tiry church and hla hia councillors two of the elders or high priests such as ho be shall or has appointed and set apart for that tint purpose E ose 9 and it shall come to pass that after they are lid id beffie the bishop of my church and after that lie he has lias received these testimonies concerning the consecration of the properties of my church that they aamot be taken from the church agreeably to my commandments evary every man shall be made accountable unto me a steward over his own property or that which he has received ly by consecration inasmuch as is sufficient for himself and family it is hardly handly worth while for me to say anything about tiie the disposition of tile the people still when a pron peron can realize that men do not know themselves we consider it proper to tell them who they are what aliat they are sire and how they feel it would not be worth while for me or for any other person to talk about their dispositions the nature of meir weir intentions their attachments to tho world their sympathies passions or any thing of tile tiie kind were it not wat oat people are CM often blinded in th ir minds and do not nut know themselves hence it t is proper enough to make a few remarks about ih melves m elves I 1 w will ill read another reve revelation laton given in april 1812 verily jlius ilius saith the lord in add dilion to tile tiie laws of the church concerning women and children those who belong 7 to the church who have lost thir husbands or fathers women have claim I 1 im on their husbands for their maintenance un tiel ther their husbands hns bands are taken and if ir they are not found transgressors they shall have fellowship in the tha church and if they are not faithful they shall shail not have fellowship in the church yet they may remain romain upon their inheritances according to ine ina laws of the land and paragraph 2 A 11 II children have claim chim upon pit parents rents for tin tir ir maintenance until they are of a ag and aft abt r that thit they hav claici upon the chum chat i or in oilier words upon tile the lords store boi hii ip il it their parents hare have not to div give I 1 a ahm s and nd the store house honse shall be hot kot k ot by the consecrations of the tha church and widows and or orphans plans shall ie e provided for as its also t purr amen ami n T tipra tiera arm ar orm m is aw annar ner oer n still pi lor to this tilis lyne irne time li tating tung tl at lut it is is tile llie duty of all al people who aho co go to A on to c alst aise erate prato all their thir property to til ill the i lyo irp i i of jesus of latter litter dav day saints tm tit rv ri v I lation w is s ret rel to et t tle tio tie ilia april con forence in 1854 ft was wai w one oue of the first corn com ar reve revo revel lations irions div gian n to this people a ter tar tarth thy th y hid cv i pi p i i lige rine il gc ge of oran orino onan izing ini ins themselves a a chur ci s a i boda wi a tie tle tie kingdom ol 01 toi yoi toj nj on the tho tio tie eart I 1 observed t ti 11 i ani and alid I 1 now v unit milt that it vill will ba be one ona of the h lii wh cd the 04 people will vi it receive inte into ti ir hearts and of their tapir own free wi I 1 and choice and vad esteem it an a plea pleasure ure a and i bl unto teru tuen to 01 ol observe serve serre aad auld kerp herp most holy loy lov hov ii IL is timo the of cots coi cor sprit seraf craff craft g their p was given to 0 lle ile ahe lie people it ii M the ilia will of lie uie 1 ie lord they should enjoy tho g ind priti 1 I gr close fiose who choose to hand over geir weir property to whom T to tor hun him who has fins given them every til iliff tey tiley possess ile he 0 ov ns nil nii all ill chev t lev ley possess ado a lio iio they have no proper property tv more or less only nt soach wh actually belongs to I 1 r P lord jord j ord and lie he i i s it out oat and best bestows bestons oli s it chero it him 1 ti i 1 nolt no for me to rise ri se up and si that I 1 cm can v VB ve to siw hie loro for in reality I 1 have nothing to v I 1 seem I 1 ti hop ho bin P 0 something why i I 1 dec bec it tse ise P tard lyes lies feen sera F n fit to bring info HIP nip foran artt and las 1 ny effort efforts in g things are 1 l hi bir sir aud and h wi ii ll 11 are term termed ed property I 1 cje i ii 1 a pl p n and order has orga organised organized nied red sed thit his id iia tind mid beoo d it by his im wisdom and power II 11 h har bar i gisen given iven n p e mv bei bel heine helne n rr upon this earth which i t s C r the erth c irth is 11 the tiie lords and all that i 1 c in to it all the el elements ments no matar liow ilow low v are an organized ted led no matter what element it is is th piment the tile lord has brought together tn in fai aai ose oie t iw lit earth was it his in la tha beginning t w did lle lie cause the atoms of elements to 0 o rw n M t sether gether to organize org inize the earth 7 ile ha did he 11 i nile nug forth the earth and formed and orean organ it as etwas in the beginning and made it perfect fai 1111 mand tand hnis holy to ahm do 0 these lement elements 8 belong now f to ih i sm beine beina bein who owned oward them in atie beginning ti T in i o oth instill it i still fit iiii and its ils hillies 4 av anal ilat liat it in clu ciu I 1 caci lle ile vile lie of us its and end 10 aid lo linc ii v udes ath ati H that we seem to possess it includes all nil the elements in whatever shape form or condition and where ever they are situated whether in lit the ilia native state slate or in a blate elate of organization for the comfort aud benefit of man tile the ability which we have to bring them together we have received of the tiie lord by his free gift and lie li alias has bas made us capable of perform performing inZ many things for his glory for his ills wisdom and for the exaltation of those creatures he lias has brought forth and made has he not endowed mankind with intelligence Inteli gence 7 ile he has created them but a little lower than the angels they hav have received wisdom knowledge and understanding and are organized to receive power glory and honor if they are industrious prudent and fried with understanding to knote from irom cherp these favors emanate of course they will attribute all the tile power and goodness to the ho honor alor and glory of the hebel hetel being ng who bestowed them As I 1 have already observed the people are ignorant they do not know themselves do not understand der ders stand land their own organization or from whence they are if they did there would be no necessity of talking to the people upon these thess points we afe ahe are here oil on the earth erth we live and find ourselves endowed with wonderful powers and it seems as though we as individuals were ivere perfectly 1 I 1 dent of every creature or being throughout the i immensity of space we cannot see our superiors and we do not fully realize from whence we I 1 have received anything we WO now have in our possession this is in conse consequence quence of our short sigh figh edness of our want of understanding and of the knowledge of eternal beings herein is 13 where mankind fail lacking that which we might have ili in our posse possession pos sion siou vz viz the light of the revelations of jesus christ the liht light of the holy spirit the light of heaven this ii H the ilia privilege of the latter day saints but they do not enjoy 1 it as much as they might consequently it is right to talk about about these matters and to instruct the people if we could perceive and fully understand that all the ability and knowledge we have every good we possess posse ss every bright idea meal every pure affection and every good vision of mind from our infancy present time lime are nil all the free girt gift of tile tiie lord and of ourselves have bothi nothing n original we should ba be much better prepared and ad far more ready to tp aci act faithfully and wisely under all i circumstances every good thing is in his hands 1 is subject to his power belongs tobia to him and is only handed over to us for the tho th time being to see what use usa we will make of af it if we will improve ba be faithful and dil diligent lyent in all the ules bles upon us we then have he ile principle of or increase and arid this is tile the great blessing given to mail man and was the promise brorn se 1 which abraham received at the ilia hands of the lord Ab abraham was fearful lie he would not increase ini fiti I 1 and multiply his pst posterity erity on the earth though u h lie he might increase itt lit in power wisdom ind knowledge 0 ll ledge himself and reflected reflect id 1 I have no do children or even prospect of thep to rise bless me or to honor and ana revere my name in in ma coming generations the lord hov hoi however ever e gave him this promise you have been faithful and I 1 gained wisdom and knowledge in every blessing I 1 have bestowed upon you nd now I 1 will give you a promise that you shall yet have a posterity and it hall shall multiply upon the face of the earth I 1 and fint finlly ily lly the end odthe number thereof no man I 1 call can tell for your seed shall te as numerous us As tile the sands upon the sea shore or ilia stars iu ill the firmament and to their increase there shall be no end the same blessing was promised to the lod jesus chrit it was tile the privilege of abra lra lin 1 im to receive knowledge wisdom and under st anding but this did not satisfy him he lie wanted to see his children multiply when abraham has passed a certain ordeal and proved himself faithful he will receive honor power glory and exal t tion which he lyp is made as capably attaining in the future ns those were wore wr ro who acted previous to bis ins dav div were not tilis this the tho case tae be th lip power of the mind the spirit that is placed in ili til body and andali all ali that pertains to tifa fird in tills this stage of action or prior to our coming into the world tire lire not made honorable and if they are not honored bv liy the tile creature by the llie principle that is placed in him that organization is liable to decompose can you understand this for instance let a man twin or woman who has received muril murli of the tiie power of god and revelations turn autv from the tha holy the lordi atiq alig i t seems that their senses are taken from irom them their un demanding and judgment in righteousness liken viken away they go into dark ness and become like a baiad who gropes av b the cie wall will lany many or of yon witness this almost daly d daiy daiv alv aly such will continue to toab go on the re iroide path until they are decomposed winie while who who are faithful will vill continue to I 1 increase and this is the tile great blessing the lord has given to or placed d within the ilia reach of tile the children of man even to be capable of receiving eternal lives fives to have such a promise so scaled upon our beacie which no power oil on earth in heaven or beneath i the barth can call tike like it from us its to be sealed 1 iiii llly up to the day of redemption and have the promise of eternal lives is the greatest gift of all the tile people do not fully understand aliese things and have them not in full vision before their minds if i they did I 1 wiil will tell you pl I 1 finly and iid lid in honesty that there isy not a it tit lit gritl if alc lic which ape jpe the asai asal saints lits ar are ara called to piss rass through that they I 1 would not realize and am acknowledge to bo be their greatest jamest blessing I 1 wig sive give lve ive you my reasons for this abis ic it adam had hid got vot not s inid nned aid ayd and ani if hh bli posterity had continued upon the earth they cuhl not have known sin or the tile titter witter fron from the tire sweet neither reither would they I 1 have known for lor tile the plain and simple I 1 reason that every effect cali can only ba be fully manifested by its opposite if the tile saints could as they ebo ivo when ibey they are called to pass pans through trials and to sufi safi tir what they call sacrifices they would acknowledge them to be the tile greatest blessings that could be bestowed upon them their nut but put them thom in ILI possession posse bioti of true prin ails eipl s aud and true is without the file crp orp opposite osIte and they could not know enjoyment they could not realize happiness they could not tell light from darkness because they have no h knowledge of darkness and consequently are destitute of a realizing sense of light if they should not taste the bitter how could they realize the sweet they could not they would be like a machine and could not approximate to tile the standard of the present enjoyment ot of the ilia brute and probably not even to that of the tho vegetable kingdom to know the bitter they must taste it they must be made acquainted with the evil there is in ili existence or they cannot realize the tiie good if the people could see and understand things as they are instead of saying ili ill 1 I have llave sacrificed a great deal for tills this ki kingdom na 0 sacrifices 5 they would under understand s tand land that they had made mada no sacrifices at all they have llave received the blessing of the knowledge of god to know and i understand things as ili ill they ey are that they mav may may contrast between the evil and the good between the light and the dark darkness ns between that which is of god and that which is not of god between that which is calculated to exalt exult and glorify lie people and that which is calculated to carry them down to destruction and waste them away until they would be no more it is isa curious ide abut one in favor of which there is much testimony that when nhen people people take the downward road one that is calculated calculate to dest destroy roy them they will actually in every every sense of the word be destroyed will they be bewham what is termed annihilated no there is no such thing as annihilation for you cannot destroy the elements of which things are made but jesus will take the kingdom and rein reig ti until lie he has destroyed death and lim aim in that hath tile the power of death which is the ilia devil the people think that many of the tiie revelations of tile the lord are hard and |