Show LECTURE ON TUESDAY evening the alth 1114 bishop 0 F whitney leo lec tu ed in the social hall salt lake fyr under the auspices of the tu donte society of the salt lake e Ae academy ademy subject god in tue them of men and govern luela tB there was a crowded diance di ence every aval available lable seat being peopled ed and the lecture was list faw to from beginning to end with he 1 l i A closed attention by all present 4 after a few prefatory observations bishop whitney proceeded to say the idea of this lecture if I 1 may call it a lecture was suggested to me by a conversation that took place between two of the elders of the church of jesus jesos christ of latter day saints sainta the gist of which was this one of them contended that god while he might be and undoubtedly was in the great things which happened in the midst of mankind in important events such as the rise and fall of nations in great political changes and vicissitudes which are taking place and have taken place from the beginning until now while he might perhaps inspire a religious reformer an inventor or the discoverer of some great truth which Is born to bless humanity lie he was not in the small things and that many incidents occurred in the history of man of which god took no cognizance whatever that he was above noticing little things but was behind as the propelling power of what men call great things the other elder opposed him in this view and used among other expressions in reply these forcible words brother so and so if you have not yet learned that god to is in all things great and small it is my humble bumble opinion that you have a great deal to learn now suppose we analyze the position of the former speaker for a moment suppose we ask ourselves the question whence come the great thin things gs of history whence come those mighty happenings that shake the earth with their thunder that attract the attention of millions and will not be ignored whence comes the mighty avalanche that sweeps from the hilltop hill top crushing and grinding and carrying all before it filling the gorges and the canyons and valleys below does it not come from the massing of flake upon flake does it not come from the tiny snowball started as by merest accident from the mountain tops but gathering its congenial element as it goes until in the all powerful avalanche it thunders down the mountain side and carries away all opposition in its path can we say that tha god Is ie in the avalanche and not in the snowflake can we say that god is in the ocean and not in the dewdrop can we say that he is in the globe the continents and islands of the earth and not in the tiny grain of sand which many times multiplied goes to make up the solid earth on which we dwell can we say he is in the thunderbolt and the storm and not in the ripple of the stream and the twitter of the birds small things it appears are the seeds of great things the acorn maybe may be tiny but it holds within its little shell the germ of the great and spreading oak under whose boughs the beasts slid and man himself may seek shelter while the fowls of heaven lodge and make their hame amidst tte its branches Is god in the oak and not in the acorn we may take all the great events of history al the mighty happenings in the midst of mankind and we cau can tram trace them back to small beginnings which though they be despised and overlooked by man are great laud and important in the eyes of god we are living in an age which is promised to eclipse in importance in grandeur and magnificence in civilization in learning in power and in glory all ages that have preceded it the dispensation of the falness of times which has been compared to the ocean into which all the rivers and rills of past ages will run but what was the beginning of this dispensation how did god commence this great work it has haa now assumed what might be termed respectable dimen and the world Is beginning to acknowledge that mormonism has passed that stage in its history when it can any longer be permitted to pass unnoticed when men can any more afford to ignore it and overlook it it Is marching on to its triumph to its victory which has been decreed and destined from the beginning of time from before the foundations of the world but how was this work begun A humble farmers fer mers boy went out into the woods one day and asked god for a blessing his mind was torn with doubt with perplexity with questionings tion ings as to which of all the religious creeds of christendom was the true one he was a seeker after truth and this was the favor he asked of the almighty for he believed there was a god and he believed that god would answer prayer that he had but to put into practice the advice of the apostle if ay man lack wisdom le ie thim ask of god who to all men liberally and upbraid eth not and it shall be given him joseph smith believed this he had that living faith which god could not deny true he was only a boy he was only a little one a tiny speck apeck of mortality one among millions and millions of gods creatures but he was not satisfied with his spiritual condition he desired to know more and he believed that the lord would give him what he sought he did not believe as the christian world asserted that the heavens were closed that god no longer to man but he believed in the god of abraham isaac and jacob he who never changes who is the same yesterday today and forever he bowed in humility before that god and that god answered his prayer this work began with thai that humble boy and on the ath of april 1880 six humble persons persons met together and organized the church of jesus christ cb rist of latter day saints the germ and nucleus of a work before which the glory of the kingdoms of this world will pale as pales the starlight before the morn this may seem boastful this would appear pro presumptuous sumptuous in the eyes of the world they have so long loag lieen in the habit of leaving god out of the question of putting him away for though many draw near to him with their lipa lipstet yet their hearts are far from him alm and in the political world especially it hae ha become so fashionable to shut god out from all participation in human affairs abat it seems absurd to hold such views as aa those which I 1 have expressed and I 1 ana am sorry cosay to say that this leaven of doubt of uncertainty of infidelity is making inroads into this very work of which I 1 speak hence we hear bear now and then an elder asserting that god is in the great things hut not in the small Is this the god of whom his son jesus testified when he sent his apostles forth to preach the gospel when he told them to take neither purse nor scrip nor two coats coate but to go forth trusting in god for their dally daily bread Is he the being of whose care and providence it is said the very hairs of your heads are numbered and not a sparrow falls to the ground without your fathers notice Is he the god whom jesus meant when he said consider the lilies flues of the field how they grow they toil not neither do they spin and yet I 1 say unto you that even solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these if then god so clothe the grass which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven will he not also clothe you 0 ye of little faith Is this a god who is not in the small things a god who can hear the young ravens when they cry a god whose ears are saluted with the shouts of armies and the hos hosannah hosannas annas of mighty multitudes and yet canturk can turn to hear the prayer of a little child I 1 want to relate here an incident that happened to one who is near and dear to me my mother in her early childhood her mother on leaving the house one day warned her not to meddle with the dishes on the table for said she if you break one I 1 shall have to whip you her Ifer mother was a woman who kept her word whether she promised good or evil whether it was a present or a penalty she was in the habit of faithfully executing what she had spoken when she had left the house her daughter possessed of that spirit of mischief to which children axe are so liable did exactly the thing that her mother told her not to do and by letting the tale table leaf fan fall she broke several of the dishes now in the days of poverty of bf the people of this church this was a fie heavier avier loss than perhaps many of us know how to appreciate the little girl was terror stricken she knew her mother would whip her she knew it because she had confidence in her mothers word because her mother was as a woman of honor who did not speak one thing and mean another but the child thought of her father in heaven of her eternal parent and she went to the bottom of the orchard and bowed down under an appletree apple tree and asked god who rules the earth and holds in his hands bands the destinies of men and nations to soften her mothers heart that she might not whip her she sprang up filled with fo jey with peace for the holy ghost had testified to her that the threat would not be fulfilled her mother returning and seeing what had happened took hv her child into another room for the purpose of lecturing her and then giving her the promised punishment but she found that her arm ar M E was paralyzed that her heart was melted and she could no more lift J her hand to strike the child than she would have raised a knife tor for the purpose of taking her daughters daughter life yet god is not in the small things the great this anecdote was told by my mothers father heber C kimball in the theological school in kirtland before the prophet joseph smith and many mamy of the leading elders of israel and they wept like children for the subject which had been up for consideration was falth faith in god and of what does it consist joseph who had a heart as tender as a childs wiping away the tears from his hie eyes said brethren I 1 could not tell you any more what faith is if I 1 lectured here all night than has been illustrated in that simple anecdote told by brother kimball it is well timed that is what f T mean by faith yes this is faith the honest conviction of the humble childlike child like heart going to god not with high sounding words and swelling phrases but asking him in simple language for the desire of the soul but the world despises such things and as I 1 have said they have nearly shut god out of the qu question buealon ealon the spirit which animates this world is the spirit of egotism of selfishness and a desire to claim the glory which belongs unto the maker it is the spirit which animated of old when walking upon the wals of Baby babylon babydoll loll viewing that magnificent city with its hanging gardens qua one of the wonders of ther world orld with its ita hundred brazen gates with its lofty walls so thick that several chariots could ride abreast along the to top p thereof so splendid a aty so BO impregnable a fortress that it seemed 41 to laugh to scorn the power of every foe and was called the glory of tb excellency babylon tho the great 11 walked upon the walls of this thia city and communed with himself in the pride of his hia heart in this wise Is not this great babylon which I 1 have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of vw my power and for the lionor honor of my majesty he had been warned a little time before in a dream which was interpreted by daniel the prophet of the danger of giving way to the spirit of self laudation forgetting that god ruled in the kingdom of men and that lie he had power to give that kingdom to whomsoever he would in his dream he saw a tree which was great and mighty waving its lofty branches covered with magnificent foliage filled with fruit which was waa meat for both man and beast the top of which tree reached to heaven while its branches overspread the earth while surveying it he heard a voice from heaven say hew down the tre tree and cut off his branches shake off his leaves and scatter his fruit etc nevertie less leasy lemye the stump of his roots in the earth etc the interpretation of the dream was this that chad nezzar was the tree which he had wen seen in vision for at that time babylon was the universal um versal empire it had bad broken in pieces all the nar na eions of the earth it was called the hammer of the whole earth for this reason and wherever the beasts of the field roamed or the fowls of the air lodged or the children of men dwelt was the great king of all even the covenant people the house of israel had been commanded to bow their necks to whom the lord at that time called rig hia leer servant vant 11 but he forgot that god who had made him great and like the politicians and rulers of to day the kings and presidents and magistrates and mighty men he imagined that he had done all this that he had conquered the earth bad built this magnificent city land nd as napoleon in later times exclaimed 1 I am francea france Franc ev ao 80 declared 1 I am great 11 when he be had uttered this vain bo a voice fell from heaven saying 0 king to thee it is spoken the kingdom te Is departed from thee and they shall drive thee from men man and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field they shall make thee to eat grass grams as am oxen and seven times shall pass over thee until thou know that t the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men and alveth it to whomsoever he will and it was done to his credit be it said was converted and when the seven times were expired and he had suffered this humiliation until he had learned not to take the glory to himself but to acknowledge the hand of god in his greatness the kingdom was restored to him and he gave thanks unto the lord and acknowledged that he was king of the earth as well as the king of heaven A strange feature of this fact in history is this that though this great man for he was a great man was filled with pride with vanity with selfishness and ambition yet god had deigned to call him my servant and by the mouth of his prophet jeremiah had commanded his chosen people to bow their necks unto the yoke of this king of babylon and it was to be well with them if they did so but if they sought to ally themselves with the king of egypt disaster and mW misfortune would follow we all know how this was fulfilled jerusalem was taken the city was destroyed the temple was despoiled of its gold and silver vessels the king of judah the princes and priests and many thousands of the people who were not slain were carried captive in chains to babylon because they hearkened not unto the voice of the prophet to bow their necks to the yoke of the servant of the lord daniel the prophet who interpreted that dream of this kings king and other dreams which he had was one of the princes of the house of judah thus carried into captivity this chii sets us thinking the Baby babylonian louian king a servant of the lord the lord called him so go and what is morer more remarkable the I 1 man who was raised up to wrest from the dynasty of his kingdom in the reign of his son cyrus the persian was predicted years before he be was born bom by the prophet isaiah who says concerning him thus saith the lord to his anointed to cyrus whose right hand band I 1 have holden to subdue nations before him and I 1 will loose the loins of kings to open before him the two leaved gates and the gates shall not be shut here was another man a supposedly a heathen not of the house of israel whom the lord condescends to name by name before he was born bom and calls him not simply my servant but mine anointed and yet some men think that god does not reign on earth we are looking forward to the time when he whom we know as king of kings will come to take the reins of government he whose right it is to reign we speak of that time and we look forward with joyous anticipation to that great reign of righteousness and peace of a thousand years dura duration tiou when god will rule over the earth when christ will be king it appears to me |