Show DISCOURSE by ELDER jihn TAYLOR 1 DELIVERED AT forty sixth annual conference of the church of 01 jesus christ of latter day saints in the new tabernacle ern er nacie nacle I 1 salt sall lake city eity on the Affer afternoon noon of thursday aaril april gah 1876 REPORTED BY DAVID W EVANS wilen WHEN we meet together on occasions like the present it is absolutely necessary pec essary I 1 that we place pace ourselves under the guidance and direction of the almighty that is a thing indeed which is proper at all times for in the tho loed lord lond we live and move from him we derive our beima bei bel HRand and to him we are indebted for every bles bies blessing blesing ing that we enjoy of a temporal and spiritual nature for everything that pertains either to this world or that which is to come we are met together on this occasion to attend to the duties and responsibilities that devolve upon us associated with the church charch and kingdom of god upon the earth and it is very important that we have hla hia spirit to direct us in our speaking as well weil as in our hearing and in the various purposes piana plana find and calculations that may be started for the building up of the kingdom of god upon he the earth for we really are or ough ought 11 to be co labor ers with the alm aim almighty gaty for the accomplishment of his purposes on the earth and although we are vely and incompetent to do anything in and of ourselves yet with the assistance and guidance of the almighty we shall be enabled pied pled by diligence and faithfulness in discharging the various responsibilities ties that devolve upon us to fill up the nie measure asure of our da day y upon the earth with honor before benore e god before the holy and before all good men meu and lend at least a helping hand in building up the kingdom or of god upon the earth that we so frequently talk about and to introduce those principles which ema emanate from the most alost high in this regard however we can do nothing of ourselves neither could au any man who ever lived upon tipon the 1 earth do anything in and of himself there is a great gread gurk gurp sur rame ramo overruling over ruling power that shapes manages controls and dictates the affail of the human family II 11 Y ho he raises up one cone and puts down another he regulates and controls the affairs of the nations at his will and in regard to the purposes that he be hast hash designed pertaining to the earth whereon we ilves lives live of which he has given dussome us some slight ideale idea lie lle will have to be after all ail 1 the principal operator cooperator co the t leading e a ding handtke hand the power that guides directs and controls ile he has called upon us to be the his assistants m 4 the work that he has commenced ia in these last days and has called a variety of laborers into hla hia vineyard whom he be has promised to sustain to guide and to direct and hence although it ma may y be an unspeakable privilege for us to be co laborers with the almighty yet it is only through the spirit power and intelligence that ho he communicates that we shall be able abie to do anything acceptable in the sight of god and as I 1 said before no man living without this assistance is capable trl fri able abie of doing anything acceptable in the sight of god when we look at the works arks of god in the vei vai 4 rious ages that have passed pas sed and in the various dispensations that have been ushered into info the world we see this manifestly pointed out in fact when we reflect upon the work that we are engaged in to whom are we indebted to any of us I 1 think not to doseph smith I 1 think not he was wai made use of as an instrument in the hands handa of t ho the almighty to convey certain principles that god revealed to him that was all and when h he came I 1 it t was not his own words that he spoke it if was waa tho the revelation of gods will to him and it Is that vv which we are in possession ef of through him as an ah instrument it is so with president Youn gaud his hia it Is so with the Twelve it is so with all the bishops high councils high priests and all the various authorities of the church and kingdom of god upon the earth it Is not that thero there is anything inherent in us us for we know nothing only as god revealed it f we know nothing only as it was communicated we did not understand der stand tho the fint first prin princ girta eirIA lp ef ui the doctrine of christ ghrist even and I 1 have never met with anybody on the face race of the earth where I 1 have t travelled ravel led who did know anything about these things we are indebted to the lord therefore for any knowledge that we have of the true doctrine of the church ot of jesus christ of latter day saints and for all the ramifications thereof we are indebted to him for a knowledge of the priesthood whether that priesthood be after the order of which is after the order of the son of god or whether er it be the lesser or aaron ic le priesthood we none of us knew anything about it and nobody ever did until god communicated it and the same thing holds good all tho the way through go back to the history of the world as reported in the bible bibie and book of mormon abd and you will find that every great movement ever made among men that had god to support it originated not with men but that god himself was the author of it jt even jesus himself when he came said III 1 I came not to do my will but the will of him who sent me and the words that I 1 1 I 1 speak n not ot of myself but the father that dwells in me he boeth the works therefore looking at things in this point of view we above all people who dwell on the face of th the e e earth a r ought to acknowledge the h hand band a d of f god in all things and in fact we have a revelation directly on that point which says that with none is the lord angry but with those 1 who do not acknowledge his hand in all things we are here for a certain purpose the world was organized for a certain purpose the world has been clest destroyed royed roved for a certain purpose and J judgments u d ghents have overtaken it for a certain purpose the gospel has been introduced for a certain purpose in the different ages of time and among the di merent different peoples to whom it has been revealed and communicated and we today are in subjection to the general rule the lord has led us along as he once led israel and as he be led the Nep hites from the land of jerusalem and the ten tribes and other peoples who went to different places he has led us along and the first thing he did with us or to the world whereon we live or with whom we are associate associated di was to send his gospel having revealed it first to joseph smith and he being authorized by the almighty and having received his appointment through the holy priesthood pries theod that exists in the he heavens and with that appointment authority to confer it upon others did confer it upon others other and and they in turn upon others and hence heum th the gospel was sent to us in the various nations where we re rei sided and when these men went forth to proclaim this gospel they went as jesus said not to do their will but the will of the father who sent them and to operate cooperate co with the holy priesthood here upon the tarth in introducing correct principles hence they went among the nations and thousands and tens of thousands and millions listened Is to their testimonies but as asil it was in former days so inias it has been in latter days says jesus IStra strait lt ia is the gate and narrow the vay way yay that leads to life and few there be that find it while wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction and many there be that jo go in thereat thereL ll this hasteen has hns been the case in all ages and among all peoples peo piea plea wherever and whenever the gospel has haa been preached to them now then the lord has been desirous in this age as he has in irl other ages to gather to himself a pe pepie people pie who would do his hii will keep his commandments listen to his counsel and carry out his bis be heats to whom could lie he send to the wise and learned to the tho philosopher and statesman to the prince and potentate verily no the lord in this ago as on former occasions sends by whom he will send he selects his own messengers and sends them among the people and when iio ilo lie he elders of went forth he be said to them in a certain revel atlon 1100 go forth and mine angels shall go before you and my shall 11 1 1 and spirit accompany you they went forth and god w was as true to his word and many of you at that time in distant nations listened to tilo the words of life and when you heard them you knew know and understood then just as jeus us sald said ably my sheep bear my voice and know me aud and they follow me but a stran stranger er will they not fol sol lowi be ciame thy they L know tiow not thu vol voi voice ca 0 of f a stranger you beard the voice of truth accompanied by the spirit of god and aud that caused a chord to vibrate within your own and you yielded obedience and came out here as we find you today to day now then we are gathered together to help heip ip what to do to look after our own individual interest no accumulate To wealth no to possess and wallow in the good things of this life no but to da do the will of god and devote ourselves our talents and abilities oun our intelligence intelligence and influence in every possible way to carry out the designs of jehovah and help to establish peace and righteousness on the earth this as I 1 understand I 1 it is IR what we are here fori forr for fon and hot to attend to our own individual affairs and let god and his king kingi lom do as they please we are all interested te in the great latt erday work of god and we all ought to be coworkers co workers therein it is proper sometime sometimes i that we should re flecta reflect a little upon some of these things and find out what is our true status and position before the lord anti ami before one another before the angels and before the world that we are mixed up with an and have dhave madr or less to do with we want soine boine sometimes to pause and reflect a little upon some bf these things was god so careful to preserve the plates upon which this record was wag found and from which it was translated why was he be so desirous that the old prophets who lived upon this continent generations ago should sacredly guard and keep these sacred records he told us what it was for and aud the prophets told Us what it is for and jesus when he was here told us what it was for that these things might come forth in the last days for the benefit of his hia people and for the benefit of all who should believe in and obey the word of god among the gentiles what for that we might have havu a corroborating testimony fromn froma from a deop people le upon this continent who had bad their prophets which should ogree agree with the testimony which we had from the ceni con i of asia and that through the instrumentality of that truth which shall be developed a nucleus deveto zed eed might be formed rough through which god could communicate his will and accomplish those purposes that he has designed to accomplish from before the foundation of the world erom prom the commencement of tb the p organization of this world god designed the accomplishment of the very thing that we are enga engs engaged gedL in ia here today to day we live in what the scriptures call the dispensation of the of times in which the lord has said that he would gather together all things in one whether they be things on the earth or things in the heavens in this dispensation pens pensa tion atlon he designed to call together his sheep that were the face of the earth just as much as he be did in the days daya of jesus how was it then said jesus father I 1 pray for those whom thou hasl hast given me thine they were and ancl thou davest them me I 1 p pray for or them that they may be one as 1 I father arnin am in thee and thou in me e that the world may way know t that at t thou ou hast bast sent me mer he has done the same thing in this day he has gathered together his lils sheep he has hrs organized his bis holy priesthood in its ful fu iness ness perhaps as perfectly as us it ever was organized on the face of the earth I 1 do not know fully the position of things in enochs day there may have been many things transpired on this continent that we have not had revealed unto us for we have not all their records only part of them were translated some of the things contained on the plates were unlawful to be written at that time but there were times timea when men had communion with god there were times when god revealed himself unto his servants the prophets there were times when men came with a thus saith th the eLord lord to pie there were times when the people would say eay all that the lord has bid us to observe that will we observe and do there were times when the people said the lord is our king the lord is our judge the lord id Is our lawgiver and he shall rule over us god is seeking to have a people like that in the present that through the priesthood priesthood riest hood upon the earth we wp shall shall be associated with the priesthood in the heavens and they with their god there aie are no people now and there never was a people who could accomplish anything without i this and as I 1 said kaid before without i the thia guidance and direction of tho the almighty thele there are a good many things associated with the these matters and some ot of them are very pla pia plain and simple in fact it is said by a certain individual that they are so plain that a wayfaring nain man though a fool need not err there therein lil irl and it was waa said in former days god hath bath not chosen the wise and great of the earth but the welk weak and foolish things of this world to bring to nought the things that are then he be has haa restored the holy priesthood and that as I 1 un der stand it is the rule of 0 god whether on the earth or in the heavens the principle by which all things are got gor arned ernedis in tab hea by whick which when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our god and his chrisi christ all things will be governed here on the earth these e then as I 1 understand abes t them h in t a are r e things of very great im to the latter day saints forit tor it isto is to them that lam Iam I 1 am speak log lug this afternoon we have havear an organization in our church as they had iu lu former times we are told that in the days of jesus on th the asiatic continent god placed in his church first apostles secondarily prophets afterwards pastors pastor teachers evangelists ac and we v are pa mo royer crover told that these wen placed in lu the church for the perfecting 0 of f the saints for the wort of the ministry for the edifying ol 01 the body of we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the son of god toi perfect man to the falness of the measure of the stature of christ that we may no longer be children to sed bed to and fro by every wind d doc doctrine but that we may grow up into him who is our living head in all things that we may indeed be he like him one with him as be he is IS one with the father this is the kind of or principles that they had then and this the kind of organization what have we something very similar xe we have apostle apost les lea 3 and a first cy what are the members of th the first presidency apostles we vve have an organization of the as the they y had there we have also aln seven seventies ties in all of which we have even more than they had though I 1 do not know what they bad oa on this continent that is not made manifest we shall know these things by and by as the purposes of god roll forth and their tion sare made known to usper us pertaining to these matters behave we have 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