Show D I 1 S a 0 TT T T sem iem irie irps ise 57 lly liy ily CHARLES CHRIS hiie MUSE DELIVERED ann ang me the salt tahe zake assembly hall hail sunday afternoons march 4 reported BY GIBBS AND ai s THa cha shaving ving been called upon this af cd J hernoon ter noon to speak to this congregation I 1 ear earnestly desire that I 1 may be so BO influenced by the tho spirit of k ke struth atroth that I 1 may bo able to bring forth buch such things aswill as will be profeta ble for us ug to reflect upon I 1 feel that t r wo we are greatly blessed in being alleged t meet in this house dedi cited to the worship and service of tour zour jour heavenly father where becan we can attend to those things which are re quiren of us in peace penco and inanity in unity of B sprit lirla and receive instructions as oj M the holy spirit may prompt 3 we meet in the name of the lord all AH that we do should be done in tho the ali ail 0 11 name of jesus christ for bowe BO we have been commanded the church to wb walsh whish hite hife we belong is the church of jesus christ it is composed of ett itt pie called latter day saints but it is chilaka Ch ilaVa church up he has organized it and all the principles and doctrines which have been made known to us have been revealed through him it 18 13 la 13 and ho he will bateh over it and direct it and anif consummate it and he has commanded us that we shall do all things in connection with our faith falth in his holy name evand drand in that way only will it be ac ab A septable r cep table tabie to our heavenly father t for au all the tho bles blos blessings singa that come from a our father to us his children will ik come to us through josub jesus christ his his hla is tha tho only name given under 0 o 1 ili lii caven whereby man can bo be saved the gospel of jesus jesua christ must be 9 to every creature for it would not for our heavenly 0 father to condemn any of his crea tur tures es who did not fc elleve in jesus christ without giving them an opportunity port unity of understanding who he is st and nud what nis nia commandments are aro all people then must hear the gospel and have an opportunity of receiving it or rejecting it jesus ent out his apostles after his resurrection to preach the gospel to all the world in that day and gemra Uon non and they went forward and rul rui fulfilled filled the commandment elk ale which he gave to them since bince that time a great many false doctrin doctrines is have been introduced into the world and a great many churches tha sha hyve ye bean established according to the notions and ideas of men not authorized authorize d by the lord jeus jeub not accepted 0 of him not noi recognized by bim him im in any way they are the churches heb hes of men and the doctrines preached therein in a great many respess respect res peso bro aro the doctrines and com corm mand ments of men they agrenot are not LI of god they are not recognized by it alm aim aim they are not net acceptable to him and so BO with many f ordinances which have been introduced binco sinco that day some nen en have haves introduced them in the name of jesus christ but they were not mot authorized by the lord to rdo do so and therefore he will not accept f them and they are of no bene fit tit to thu children of men eo co far as aa otheir their bal bai is concerned but lff in the diy daiy and age in which we live v tho thu lord jesus jesua has manifested him seit seif adelf again and nas nna reorganized organized re tho the I 1 achurch church which he let lat up in ancient days in the same form and shape miti with the same bame of officer ficere with the samo bamo ordinances with the same commandments commandment and with the same barne spirit power gifts and blessings and in this church if wa live un nn berthe der the inspiration of the spirit and attend to the duties and obey oboy the commandments which he reveals in the way he has hns pointed out we w wili will be accepted of him himi and that i which his servants perform on tho the I 1 earth in his ris name in the way he i h has appointed will bo be the paine as though it 16 was F performed by himself in person and will be ac 0 canted capt edof of the father J just the tho same bame US 03 though performed by the lord i jesus christ and what they seal on the earth will be scaled in the heavens and what they loose on the earth will be loosed in the heavens heaven sj acCor according accordine dinn dinc to his word wo we have this great grgat blessing and privilege then in belonging to this PU hurch church that we become the ats people a of the lord jesus the saints of tho lord members of the church of christ not members of any church mado by a man or a set of men but the true truo church 0 of f 4 the living god established by him belt beit seit self through the tha lord jesus jebus christ and if wo offer up our bur eera Ecra ments menta 1 r r bare before him in t the ho way he haa bra appointed they ey will be accepted by him and we will receive the beno benefits that result from properly attending to thebe these things Attha atthe at the tha present time the rare a great many different sects probes professing i ing to be the churches of christ A great variety of doctrines are taught therein generally speaking these doctrines are supposed suppo sed zed to be taken from froni tho book called the bible ministers MinlA usually tead lead a portion of scripture elther either from the old testament 6 or r bom the new testament and preach discourses But nut although these different tell gions and these theeb diff different erent discourses are supposed to be taken from to aba e one yet they are very conflicting the notions and Idea ideas of one sect in regard to the things contained lathe in the book differ from those thoe that are entertained by another eeck also professing to be the church of christ and even in each of df these various ejects the tha beope do not all believe alike they do not understand der stand alike t the he doctrines that pertain to their particular sect for instance the people in what ja is called the Meth methodist church do not all beleva belleba alike the people peo I 1 e of the he baptist church do not art aft aft afi believe alike hilke there is not only a differ enco existing loli Leti litween veen the baptist and tha the methodist but the methodists differ among themselves and differ among themselves and so eo with the rest of all the didler diner ent en t beats in christendom therea tho the reason of this Is because they have no real and definite standard they talethe take tho the bible or rather profess to 0 o take the biblo bible as their standard but their ideas concerning the scriptures dwer differ they do not all understand the biblo bibio alike if they all understood the bibie bible alike there would te be a unity of dit faith but their ideas differ in regard to the meaning 0 of the things contained in the bible at the present time there la is a great controversy going on in the christian world in regard to the manner in which this thib book should be read and in regard to its authority some claim that every word in the book is inspired that the word contained in the bible nible must bo be relford up LIP n implicitly as the very word of god others dispute this deny the plen pien ary inspiration ol of the scriptures anc and bome some of them think the book should be ba regard regarded td in the same rame light as aa secular history and ad so the notions and ideas concerning the bible are very varied outside of the bible bibie they have no standard we may perhaps except the church called callad the roman romani cathella Cat holla boila church that church has it a standard in the person of cf the head of the church the pope the traditions ons ong and the decisions of the councils of the church but neither the roman catholic church nor the episcopal church which hns hug come out from it nor any of the secta sects which have come out from the E episcopal church have any inspired standard among them bavo savo and except the things that were written of old contained in the bible which they do not comprehend alike in the church of jebus jesus christ of iatter nater day saints we have something be sides the written word wo wa have the living oracles of god men that have been called and ordained and set het apart to minister in christs stead men in whom the lord has hns placed ills spirit and not only his spirit but his authority that tufey may act in liis his name and they have access unto him it is their privilege not only to expound the things that were written of old walca which havo have been preserved and placed on record and which are con bained in the books of the bible but also to receive intelligence intelli gence genee from the bame esme source from which these things that are inspired that are in chebook the book were vero given the seme same fountain from which the prophets of old partook is open to ps us and the servants ber her of god in the church of jesus christ of latter day saints can learn tile the mind and will of god respecting us as it exists in llis liis own bosom bucauto the fountain of revelation is not driad dried up access is open unto into our oun heavenly father eather as it was in times of old and if peter could learn tho the word WOM of the lord and teach tech it to the former day church so the servants of god holding a similar position today to day can call upon the lord and receive his hia word and do de clare ciare it to the latter day church elt eit the prophets of god of old wrote and spoke as they were moved upon by tho the hoj hol holy y ghost there are prophets of god living upon the earth today to day who can speak and write as they ara aro moved upon by tho the same bame power z and the word of god that comee down from heaven he in our day just as authoritative as the word of god that came in times of old and that is written in the old book beok and itis it is of in much ucil more importance to the people called L latter atter day saints because it comes direct to them thern from our living head it does not come in any ambiguous phraseology it doob does not come in a shape that would leae lewe leave it open to controversy but it comes to us clear plain and straightforward so eo that all may under understand stand we have the benent benefit of the living or orace acee not net only the words of the oracles that are dead but the words of those that are living and we find when we come to investigate vesti gate the i things that god makes manifest in our e own day through the living oracles that in spirit and in doo doctrine trine they corres correi correspond pond with the things that god revealed in days ot ol we wei then have a more sure word of prophecy than thian the things that were written aforetime the apostle peter spoke of this in his day he bald baid said sald that holy men of god wrote and spoke as tb they ey were moved upon by tho the holy ghost and that no prophecy of the scripture is of kuy any private interpretation he said further we have also a more sure word of prophecy whereunto yo ye do well that yo take heed head as unto a light th that a t chineth ina in a dark place until untie the day dawn kend and the day star arise in hear hearts tk they had the living oracles the people who lived in peter petena a day had hwd not only tae tre words of isaiah jeremiah and the other prophets and the book of the laws lawe as written by mose most 0 the inspired prophet of god who locked upon god and talked with liim him face to face th they ey not noi only had bad these things written hiu fiu irethe the ancient re cordi dp but bodt they had living oracles men in their midat midst who authorized to speak in the name of the lord and declare to thele abele the people the living word of god for their present benefit and as it was with the people in that day dayl so it is in this church that jesus christ our savior hab hwa re on the earth wo we lesve the living oracles or aclei efio those se who are called and ordal ordained nEd to ta stand between ui and ald the lord and jn in biddi addition tion to all Us this wo we have the grunt grent brivil privilege ge ol of the holy ghost universally diffused throughout the tha body of the church for the benefit of every member thereof for every man and for every woman for every individual who hs has been baptized into it and has received its ordinance ordinances every person in the church may rasy receive of this spirit which is 13 the light of god which is the spirit of inspiration which bears record of the thing things ili lii of god and aud makek maket ulain plain to all who have it the things that god reveals through the living oracles if a servant of god speaks or writes wiltes under the inspiration of the holy ghost the same came spirit by which he rewrites writes or e peaks la is in the members of the church and it is their privilege to see as Hese esto comprehend as aa he ee comprehend that we may all see eye to eye and understand the things of god alike some somme people have an idea that it Is impossible to bring a great number of individuals la to understand religion exactly alike people sometimes foint ta 6 the biffi difference arence that there is ii in human inhuman character it is true that our characters vary as do our countenances the faces that are before me today to day are all different although vre we are all of the same race we are all dinner differ different ent in our appearance even brothers and sla bla of the same ume family differ in their appearance in bome some respects so it is with all nil things that god has made it la Is not only so in regard to the human farr family illys but it is ia so BO with the tho brute creation no two blades of grass aro exactly alike no two leaves upon the trees in the forest are exactly alike no two worlds that god almighty has made that glitter in the firmament on high at night are aro exactly alike there are some bome peculiarities about each of them distinct and different from others this thia Is 13 all true trae rue but is it to bring people who are thus organized eople people of different characters and berent different mind mindia to see bee and comprehend exactly alike no there iq no difficulty about it when the thing is properly understood take any of what are called the exact sciences and people can be brought to understand them just exactly in id the bame same way take a eum bum in arithmetic for instance when a dozen people understand the rules in the same way they will work out the sum in the same bame way no matter where t hey they were berng born bora nor what lang language th they ey speak when they understand the principle and rule jha that gat govern voa TOA h of jhb the um they etli nil nii work it out in the same ivay way and what arvi dozen or a thun dred ired can do a million can do it makes no difference about the number if all understand the principle le alike they will work it out alike and the result will be exactly the same bame why cannot this thia bo be done in those things called rell reil religious glow it la Is true that religious religions principles are not governed altogether by the game rules aud nud laws as those w which aich govern secular things but bat yet iet if pe people 0 are in possession of the same spirit and the truth is made clear before their understanding they can all to bce brought to bee eee exactly alike and we have proven this in our own experience for instance when the gospel urepel of jesus christ came to u it round found us when wo we were scatter scat ecat eti Eff abroad in indifferent nations we have havo peo pl abro from england scotland wales ireland and from different parts of the european continent froni from sweden norway Germ germany anys italy and from the various cantons of switzerland a great many from the various blates states of america from tb the a islands of the sea fea from the embt indiee from africa |