Show 1 11 l copy right secured m j HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH JUNE 1842 wednesday 15 visited at different places in the city and my farm oil on the tiie prairie accompanied by my clerk and orrin porter rock brockw ell and aud sup ped at hiram kimballs Kim balls issued an editorial on the gift of the holy ghost as follows various and conflicting are the opinions of men in la regard to the giar gift of the holy ghost some people have been in the habit babit of calling every supernatural manifestation the effects of or the spirit of god whilst there are others that think there is no manifestation connected with it at all and that it is nothing but a mere impulse of tile tiie mind or an tin inward feeling I 1 impression or secret testimony or evidence which men possess and that there is no such thing b as an outward manifestation it la Is not to be wondered at that men should be ignorant in a great measure of the principles of salvation sal eal and more especially of the nature office power indu ludu influence ence gifts and blessings of the tile gift of the holy ghost when we consider that the human family have been enveloped in gross darkness and ignorance for many centuries past without revelation or any just criterion to arrive at a knowledge of the things of god which can only be known by the tile spirit of god hence it not occurs that when the elders of this church preach to the inhabitants of the ther world that if they obey the gospel they shall receive the gift of the tha holy ghost that the people expect to see some wonderful manifestation some great display of power or some extraordinary miracle performed and it is often the tho case that young members in this church for want of better information carry elong with them their old notions of things and sometimes fall into egregious errors we ilava have lately had some information concerning a few member members that are in this diemma dilemma and for their information make a few remarks upon the subject we believe in the gilt gift of the holy ghost being enjoyed now as much as it was in the apostles days we believe that thai it is necessary to make and to organize the tile priesthood priesthood that no man can be called to fill any office iee lee in the ministry without it we also believe in prophecy in tongues in fit visions and in revelations in a gift gifts and in healings and und that these things cannot be enjoyed without the gift odthe of tha holy ghost we belive believe that holy men ot of old as they were moved by the holy ghost and that holy men in these days speak by the same principle we believe in Us its being a comforter and a witness bearer that it brings things past to our remembrance leads us into alt all truth alid abd chews us of things to come we believe that no man can know that jesus is tie cie tse christ but by the holy ghost we believe in fit it in all its falness ful ness and power and greatness and glory but whilst we do this we Q believe in it rationally reasonably consistently and and not according to the wild vagaries foolish notions and traditions of men the human family are very apt to run to extremes especially in religious matters and hence people in general either want some miraculous display or they will not believe in the gift of the holy ghost of at all if an elder lays his hands upon a pensri pers per sri bri n it is thought by many that the person must immediately rise and speak in tongues and prophesy this idea ia is g dithered from the circumstance cum cum rum stance of f paul laying his hii hands lipon upon certain individuals who had been previously as they stated baptized unto johns johnd baptism which when lie had done they with tongues and prophesied philip also when lie he had preached the gospel to the tha of the city of sam sana aria sent for peter and john who when they came laid their hands bands upon them for the gift of the holy ghost for as yet he be was fallen upon none of them and when wilen simon sinton mah mag mafus magus aug aus saw that through the laying on of the apostles hands the llie holy ghost was given he offered them money monsy that he tie might possess the same power acts viii these passages are considered by many as affording sufficient evidence for some mirac miraculous ulous visible manifestation whenever hands are laid on for the gift of the holy ghost we believe that the holy ghost is imparted by the laying on of hands of those in authority and that the gift of tongues and also the gift of prophecy are the gifts of the spirit and are obtained through that medium but then to sav say say sas that men always prophesied and spoke in when they had the imposition of hands would he e tc to state that which is untrue contrary to the prec pree tico lico of the apostles and at variance with holy writ for paul says to one is given the gift ol 01 tongues to another the gift of or prophesy and tc to another the gif of healing 21 and alain do al prophecy cyl do all speak with tongues do all interpret ter pret eviden evidently showing that all did not poa pos bess sess these several gifts but that one received on gift and another received another gift all did die not prophecy ecy all did not speak in tongues all did dk not work miracle miracles but all did receive tile the gift 0 the holy ghost sometimes they in tongues and prophesied in the apostles days and some times limes they did not tile tiie same is the case with will us aiso also in our administrations while more fre fro there Is no manifestation at all that i visible to the sur surrounding multitude this will appear plain when we consult the writings of the apostles and notice their proceedings in relation to this matter paul in cor xii says now concerning spiritual gifts brethren I 1 would not have you ignorant itis liis if is evident from this that is some ome of them were ignorant ignorant in relation to these matters or they won would not need instruction I 1 achin again in the xiv chapter hesayo he says follow after charity and desire spiritual aps gifts but rather 1 1 that ve ye may prophecy it is very evident from 1 these scriptures that many of them had not spiritual gifts for inthey if they had spiritual gifts where was j the tile necessity of paul telling them to follow ollow after them and it is as evident that they did not all receive those gifts by the imposition of hands for they as a church had bad been baptized and confirmed hy by the laying on of hands bands and yet to a church of this kind under the immediate inspection and superintendence of the apostles it was n necessary ces sary for paul to say It follow a afier after charity and desire spiritual gifts aut b ut rather that ye may I 1 prophecy evidently showing that those gifts j were in the church but not enjoyed by all in their outward manifestations but suppo supposing sine sinz the gifts of the spirit were immediately upon the imposition of hands bands enjoyed bv all in all their falness and power the tha sceptic i would still dill be as far from receiving any testimony I 1 except upon a mere casualty as before for all the I 1 gifts of the spirit are not visible to the natural vision i or understanding ler ier standing of man indeed very few of them are we read that christ ascended into heaven aud and gave gifts unto men and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers eph E pil pit iv the church is a compact body composed of i different members and is strictly analogous to i j the human system and paul after speaking of the df ferent gifts says now ye are the body cf I 1 1 christ and each one members in particular and god hath set some in the church first apostles secondarily prophets thirdly teachers after that miracles then gifts of healing helps governments I 1 diversities of tongues are all ali apostles areal are all prophets are all teachers are all worker miracles have all till the gifts of healing do all speak with tongues do all interpret it itis is evident that they do not yet are they all members of the one body all members of the natural body are not the eye the th ear tile the head or tile the hand yet the eye cannot say to the ear I 1 have no need of thee nor the head to the foot 1 have no need of thee they are all so many component parts in the perfect machine the one body and if one member suffer the whole of the members suffer w 1 ith it and if one member rejoice all the rest reat are honored with it these thebe then are all gifts they come from god they are of god they are all the gifts of the holy ghost they are what christ ascended into heaven I 1 to impart imi art and yet how few of them could be known by the generality of men peter and john were apostles yet ahe jewish court scourged urged them as imposters impostors Irn im posters paul was both an apostle I 1 and prophet yet they stoned him and put him into prison the people knew nothing about it I 1 although he had in possession the gift odthe of the holy ghost our savior was I anointed with the oil i of gladness above his hia fellows yet so far from I 1 the people knowing him they said lie was beelzebub and crucified him as an impostor who I 1 could point out a pastor a teacher or an evan gelfat by their thein appearance yet had they the gift of the holy ghost I 1 butto come to the other members of the church i and examine the gifts as spoken of by paul and we shall find that the world can in general know I j nothing about them and that there is but one or two that could be immediately known if they were all poured out immediately upon the impo of hands I 1 cor xii paul says there are diversities of gifts yet the same spirit and there ard ara differences of administrations but the same lord and there are diversities of operations but it is the same god which all in all but the manifesta manifestation tiou tiow of the spirit is given unto every man to profit litif wit 1 I 1 for to one is given I 1 i by the spirit the mord word of to another the i word of knowledge by the same spirit to another faith by the same spirit to another the gifts of heal beal healley inc inq by the same spirit to another the working of miracles to another prophecy to another discerning of spirits to another divers kinds 0 of tongues 0 o another the of tongues but all these that one and the self seif selfsame same spirit dividing to gach sach mail man severally as he will there are several gifts mentioned here yet which of them all could be known by an observer at the imposition of hands the word of and the word of knowledge are as much gifts as any other yet if a person possessed both of these gifts or received them by the imposition of hands who would know it another might i receive the gift of faith and they would be as ignorant of it or suppose a man mail had llad the gift of healing or power to work miracles that would mot not then be known it would require time and j circumstances to call these gifts into operation suppose a mail man had tile the discerning of zi spirits rits 1 who would be the wiser for it or if he had d ti the e ini 1 terp of tongues u unless alees some one spoke in an unknown tongue lie he of course would have to II 11 i be silent eilent there are only two gifts that could be i j made visible the gift of tongues and the gift of i prop prophecy becy these are things that are the the most talked about and yet if a person spoke in an unknown tongue according to pauls testimony he would be a barbarian to those present they would say that it was gibberish and if he be prophesied they would call it nonsense the die gift of tongues is the smallest gift perhaps 0 of 1 the whole and yet it is one that is the most sought U 9 lit after so that according to the testimony of scripture and fhe the manifestation of the spirit in ancient days very little could be known about it by the surrounding multitude except on oil some sortie extraordinary occasion as on the day of pentecost the greatest the best and the most u useful eaul gifts would be known nothing about by an observer it is true that a man might prophecy which is a great gift and one that paul told the people the church to seek after and to covet rather than to speak in tongues but what does the tha world know about prophesying prophesy Dg paul says that it ser veth only to those that believe but buti does not the scriptures tures adv say that they in it tongues and prophesied yes but who i is it that writes these scriptures not the he men of the world or mere casual observer observers sj but the apostles men who knew one gift from another and of course were capable of writing about it if we had the testimony of the be scribes and pharisees Pharis ees concerning the outpouring of the spirit on the day of pentecost they would have told us that it I 1 was no gift but that tile the people were drunken with new wine and we shall finally have to come to the same barne conclusion that paul did that no man mail knows the things of god but by the spirit of god for with the great revelations of paul when he was caught up into the third heaven and saw things that were wera not lawful to utter no man was apprised of it until he mentioned it himself fourteen years after and when john had the curtains of heaven withdrawn and by vision looked through the dark vista of future aes ages L and contemplated events that should transpire throughout every subsequent period of time unlit tile the final winding up scene while he gazed upon the glories of the eternal world saw an innumerable company of angels and heard the voice of god it was wag in the spirit on the lords day unnoticed and unobserved by the world the tha manifestations of the gift of the holy ghost the ministering of angels or the development of the power majesty or glory of god were very seldom manifested publicly and ally aily to the people of god as to the israelites but most generally when angels have come or god has revealed himself it has been to individuals in private in their chamber in fit the wilderness or fields and that generally without noise or tumult the angel delivered peter out of prison in the dead of night came to paul unobserved by the rest of the crew appeared to marv and elizabeth without the knowledge of others spoke to john the baptist whilst the people around were ignorant of it when ellsha elisha saw tile the chariots of israel and the horsemen thereof it was unknown to others when the lord appeared to abraham it was at his tent door when the angels went to lot loto no person knew them but lihn himself which was the case probably with abraham and his wife when the lord appeared to moses it was wag in the burning bush in the tabernacle or on the mountain top when elijah was taken in a chariot of fire it was unobserved by the world and when lie he was in the cleft of a rock there was loud thunder but the lord was not in the thunder there was an earthquake but trie lord was not in the earthquake and there was a still small voice which was the voice of the lord saving I what doest thou here elijah the lord cannot always be known by bv the thunder of his voice by the display of his flory glory or by the manifestation of his power and those that are the most anxious to see these things tiling are the least prepared to meet them and were the tiie lord to manifest his power as lie he did to the children of israel such characters would be the first to say let not the lord speak ally any more lest we his people die we would say to the brethren seek to know god in I 1 in your closets I 1 call upon him in the fields follow the directions direction of the book of mormon and pray over and for your families your cattle your flocks your herds your corn and all things that you possess ask the blessing of or bcd upon all your labors and every thing that you engage in be virtuous and pure be mn of integrity and truth keep the commandments of god and then you will be able more perfectly to understand the difference between and aria wrong |