Show NECESSITY OF FAITH TO DISCOURSE BY JR rides goodhouse anil irist lake alio usual sabbath services of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints wore held ia the meetinghouse meeting house in sunday afternoon at 2 president A 0 smoot presiding the choir sang lord we come before aliee now at thy deot we humbly how prayer was offered by elder holdaway the choir sang we sing all hail to jesus name I 1 honor and praise we give the sacrament was administered by the bishopric Bis hoDric of the fourth ward ELDER A 0 SMOOT jn was glad to say that when he was very young ho learned the lesson thoroughly that alien an elder arose to address a congregation gre gation of Latt erday saints or any other body on matters pertaining to tho gospel of the lord jesus christ ho should throw himself into the hands of the lord and seek the prayers of alio saints it is earv to talk but the letter kelleth Kil leth the spirit life no matter how learned a man maybe no matter liow eloquent in oratory no matter how arduous a student unless he has the spirit of god when ho addresses a congregation on the principles of eternal life ho will never succeed hence 1 say 1 learned this lesson in my early life that a man must possess the spirit oi god when he addresses the people on matters of eternal importance god has established his gospel in its organization he has placed certain officers for certain duties he collected a people in these valleys oi various nationalities and dispositions a peculiar people this organization is the kingdom of god and con bains certain duties that have to be observed in order for the object ol 01 the work of god to be accomplished but something must bo observed be bides faith for the attainment of this object one of the apostles has said baith without works is dead being ilalio mat 1 l alou altti brains orman to accomplish the redemption demp tion of tho human race it may seem a small matter to us we ma consider it in reality as a small atone like daniel saw in vision but eventually it will grow and till the whole oarth grinding into powder all other systems this organization is the most complete tho world has over seen it was established la christs day but its magnitude although undoubtedly sensed by them was not cu joyed as fully as we enjoy it today to day but if they did experience it in its fullness certainly they have not left us any record of it if all the members and officers of the priesthood were to exercise their full power and discharge the great duties and re that devolve upon them what a power in the land we would bo I 1 could not help reflecting in the stake priesthood meeting yesterday when the resuming work on the tabernacle was discussed what could we not accomplish if we wo were only united but thirty five thousand dollars is required to complete that edifice and in a kaake where our property totals a valuation of four millions of dol dollars what is to hinder us from accomplishing comp lishing this desire it would seem that we have not the spirit the kamta possessed in the early riso of this church so far as building is concerned I 1 cannot help but think that the bishops and the priesthood so far as their authority and influence among the people 3 concerned have become a dead letter I 1 tell you my brethren and sisters that there is nothing that mortal man can not accomplish if god calls us he will see every obstacle is removed and that what he requires is done wo might be called by god to do some chinng that we in our shortsightedness might consider an absurdity was it not so in ancient times did god not call abraham to offer his only son isaac as a he had promised that in haia and in his seed should all nations of the earth be blessed if we stop to consider when god calls upon us to do anything we adl ter but if wo yo forward in faith T not doubted c will see the hand of god in e have many duties but vet he any WP neglect I 1 confess that I 1 not do everything I 1 should I 1 jo not believe that there is a perfect man in israel so far as that is concerned where is a man but what his failings but there is a power in israel and there is faith in israel god has promised us that if we will perform his requirements he will open the windows of heaven ami will pour such blessings upon us arit 11 i A huou we win not have room to contain them the young and rising generations have before them a testimony that their lathers had not they bad to make the land what it is their sons behold the results of bleir fathers labors and wonder ut tho blessings of god that have attended them it wi not nay to tamper with alio bili ties of this priesthood response avo must keep clean of the bins of th world and 0 forward liko in abraham of old faith trusting in the lord and wo ill vi rise triumphant to ELDER eternal life of lehi read from the first epistle of joan third chapter commencing at tho beconi verse as follows behold now are we the of bona vod and it doth we shall be but not yet appear what wo know that when W we shall appear we shall bo liko him see him as he IB and every man that hath this hope in him himself even as lie is pure 1 sometimes think thab we as saints do not appreciate each othor as we should here we re told we are the sons of god and that when christ comes we shall be like him we must therefore control ourselves in every respect and gradually purify ourselves so that we we may our father when we shallie hold him ingersoll the groat infidel said on one occasion that he could not see how a millionaire in new york could be a christian as eherd was so much want and suffering there if we are all the sons of god there should be a brotherly feeling existing among ns a feeling to do good and to alleviate each others suffering in this way we develop the attributes of our father and gradually become like unto him we road in hebrews that jesus was in the brightness of his fathers glory and the express imago of his person if this is so we cap readily comprehend in image our father is because wo know by history that jesus was like the rest of us ho had a body with parts and passions and we know that ho suffered the pangs oi death and passed from this stage of action wo will not all become like our father in this life wo can readily see this in nature children are born with some impediment that all the skill and science of mortal man can not remedy some aro bom perfect but meet with some accident in their youth that causes deformity and yet on the other hand some children are more perfect in physical appearance pe arance and live longer than their parents but we aro the sons of god and when he comes if we live for it we shall bo like him wo must guard well every act of our lives guard them morally guard hem physically for we shall be held accountable for not only the way we use our talents but also the manner in which wo use our bodies we must make the most of tho life we are allowed to spend upon the earth and recollect that the record wo make while here we will have to face in a hereafter PRESIDENT A 0 called the attention of the congregation to the election of a school trustee arid trusted that those who enjoyed the franchise would do their duty in this mat the speaker also alluded to the democratic ratification meeting to be hold in tho theatre saturday evening a nd hoped all true democrats and lovers of good government would be shore and help in the exercises as hu proposed to go and ratify as far as he knew how in conclusion president smoot trusted the saints would go to work with a will and resume work oa the tabernacle until it was completed the high council had resolved that work should bo resumed and the priesthood meeting yesterday also favored the action the choir sang the anthem lord now thy servant depart in peace benediction was pronounced by president david john |