| Show sunday services Bete Reft ious services were held at the fa tabernacle bernacle salt lake city sunday Dee december ember 28 1890 commencing at all 2 p m counselor cabarles W penrose pen rose presiding the choir and congregation sang the hymn beginning we thank thee 0 god for a prophet to frude us aa la in these latter days day prayer by elder william R barton the choir sang aang the hymn kormis BIor tela awake I 1 with angels loin join and chant the selean lay jay the priesthood of the eleventh ward officiated in the ad tion of the sacrament APOSTLE ABRAHAM H CANNON addressed ad drosse d the congregation we were livi nghe said in very remark able times the events which were dally daily occurring in the world were bound too to excite the attention and wonder monder of the people looking at obese things as they happened from a natural standpoint we could not at present see the object of them the reason was hidden from our sight eight yet when we viewed them as atter day saints with the eye of faith and with a partial understanding of the work which god was performing in the earth his hand band was clearly visible in the affairs of men and nations we flaw movements in empires thrones out down emperors removed republics blics arise and various other ri changes h ages taking place in different parts of the world ani and though there seemed to be no order nor regularity in these them matters yet there was certainly a controlling power governing them for the accomplishment of certain purposes As latter day saints we believed that oed designed to bring the inhabitants of this globe under the rule and dominion of his son jesus as king of kings and lord of lords we believed lieveld that nations would be brought under his hia away and affairs so ao directed as aa to accomplish those marvelous marve louB predictions made faude centuries ago concerning the latter days we looked for the fulfilment fulfillment of that prophecy uttered by daniel even before the advent of the messiah among men when the kingdom power and dominion would be given unto the saints of the most high for we believed that the kingdom spoken of by daniel had bad been established the stone to which he referred had been out out of the mountain without hands and would continue to roll forth until id ft should grind to powder the great image which th the king had seen and which daniel told him represented thet thel various nations of the world from his time till the latest generation the latter lay saints did not however anticipate that bloodshed would be necess necessary axy in the establishment jentof of the kingdom of bod among nat men D they rd did not look for a combat of earns carnal weapons in i n the accod ment of that of which god had spoken spoken they did not look for jesus to send forth alia legions among the ake eh chilgren illren of men to destroy those who received not his word or submitted not to his rule but they did look for the establishment of a kingdom of peace and good will towards all men the establishment of a government under which men and women might exercise the fullest freedom and have the most per feet liberty if we understood the gospel goepel right if we had bad not been dotards in the study of that which bod had revealed we must know this that the lord never designed design etl to rob mg man n of his agency to deprive him of the right to choose between right and wrong truth and error the gospel as had been declared by the apostle paul was a perfect law of liberty a law under which men and women were expected to their to be free fm agents agento doing that which seem oth eth good unto them in all ages it had been the rule the sought in preaching the gospel to teach men and women to be free to relieve themselves of the burdens of oppression and walk as children of god seeking to know Hi his swill will when the lord placed kurfirst our first parents in the garden of eden he gave them perfect liberty but there was one particular tree the fruit of which they were commanded not to eat and the penalty of death attached to a violation of chat hat command when adam reached forth his band to pluck the fruit and when they were about to eat of it they were n it t restrained by god in the exercise of their freedom but they werf were guilty of dis obedience and thus was beath brought into the world when abel that righteous son of edam was slain by his him brother there was no intervention of the almighty to prevent the commission of his foul crime when cains cain Is hand band was raised to slay abel though the power existed to prevent the murderous act god ged did not stay that hand but permitted the deed to be done for cain was acting upon his own agency when however the murder had actually been committed the eternal curse followed so 80 in regard to the israelites of old the lord continually sought to lead his people in a kindly way by showing them the results ot of disobedience he did not force them into a position of serving him but the two plans were placed before them the plan of salvation and that of death and eternal damnation the gospel of god was designed to give more freedom to man than could any earthly government we spoke of the glorious principles under which we lived which lay at the foundation of this god given republic we spoke of ahe inspiration of the lord which directed the framing of this sacred constitution yet the former did the gospel gave to man when practiced in its perfection the governments of the earth were of god there was no power iut but came of god and he had ordained these kingdoms empires and republics for a wise purpose it was well that gov ornaments ern orn ments were instituted amon among men even though some of them hag had laws which were injurious to the in habitan teof of the cou atry in which they prevailed still it was waa better to have the oppression of one manof the autocrat than to have no government atall at all or to be bw living in a state of anarchy the lord would bring all things intha into a proper condition in his own due time to best beet suit rio his righteous children he would no HO control the affairs of nations as to cause them eventually to submit to his will and though people might rise up against his decrees and tor for a time seem to override his law baws a and be bests yet he would bring all things to a glorious consummation read bead the book of mormon said mid the 8 speaker and see the evil results which followed the establishment of kin kingdoms doms upon this continent but in et t that sacred record they could also find beautiful examples given by some of those who ruled as kiebs among the Nep Neph hites itee apostle cannon gave several illustrations next remarking that chat under the rule of righteous judges the people pros prospered red if such a feeling prevailed in the world in our day as was exhibited by mosiah and his sons there would be peace and blessing instead of war and bloodshed eon contention strife and commotion among gods children the rule of christ was one of peace and good goodwill willand and it was this which the latter day saints should endeavor to establish in zion and elsewhere this was the influence which they should seek to extend on all sides he feared nevertheless that with all the knowledge they had received with all the revelations which god had given them with all the light that had come from above iff bating their understanding they were for far from practising practicing the true plan of gospel in this regard he sometimes felt that if conditions were reversed and to the latter day sainto sainta were bestowed the che power which their enemies as they were called today possessed they would perhaps exercise a more unrighteous domination than did those who now opposed the saints in these mountain valleys he trusted that such would not be the case though when they viewed the actions of men in this church at times and saw the injustice which was meted out by those in authority in the wards and stakes of zion he now and then feared that the gospel had bad found very shallow soil in the hearts of some of the men who presided in israel we forgot the admonition to the latter day saints contained in the book of doctrine and covenants that the powers of the priesthood were inseparably connected with the powers of heaven and they could be exercised only upon principles of righteousness when men misused those powers and that authority which god had bestowed upon them then the spirit was with dhawn d i awn and they could not have any influence with the unseen powers behind the veil why could we not always exhibit that charity and love which ever followed the savior to IB all his dealings with mankind we should not allow personal differences feren ces either in regard to be spiritual or tem temporal matters to create ill feeling in our midst if we continued to har harbor borill ill will toward each other at the same time coming to the table and partaking of the emblems of the ibe death and suffering of our lord we drank condemnation to our souls for this reason many were siuk sick among us today even unto death the presidents of stakes when dealing with disputes between the brethren should mete out justice with an impartial hand every bishop in like tu manner anner should show his independence and again there should lie be no oppression exhibited amme the priesthood however humble a man might be he should receive exactly the same saine justice as hit his more wealthy brother and lie he believed the invariable rule rule in the church courts was waa that full justice should be done regardless of a mans wealth or position in society this was as it should be if a man in authority could so degrade himself as to prostitute the powers which god had given bimby him by exercising unrighteous dominion he would sooner or later be deprived of his position and lose his standing among the people or of god we must learn the lesson of judging righteously between man and man to take such it a position that even those who were not of our faith could approach us feeling that we would yield every right belonging to them which we claimed for ourselves the unity which existed among the latter day saints was due to the spirit of god in their hearts leta let a man arise in any A tion of the 8 saints date in any part of the world and try to lead the people astray how quickly those people would Curn their backs upon him because the spirit of god did not lead in forbidden paths not dot unto darkness dark dar kaess aesa but unto light bringing contentment and peace the he power which president woodruff uPheld held today was war alone given him by tho the almighty were he deprived of the spirit of the lord and were he be to arise in that congregation and speak to the people by the power of man his words would fall dead upon the ears of kilo his hearers they would he as sounding brass brans anti and a tinkling cymbal but when the holy spirit rested upon him aud and also filled the hearts of the people when he spoke to them their hearts responded amen because beaude they knew that that which he uttered was inspired of god president deit woodruff had never made any suggestion under thim th in inspiration that had bad led the people astray or brought thim thi m into trouble or difficulty he had never given one word of counsel that would imperil any man whatever his color or profession might be the spirit of god never suggested anything that would rob man of his agency or bring I 1 injury DJ ury to him in the end this gospel message was given to no cip pedal ecial few but was offered to every member of the human family f let the latter day saints sainto think 0 all these things at this the close of a most eventful year of their history and try to have their hearts full of love and charity towards all when they were reviled lot let them turn not again with linge lings when they were not again when they were persecuted turn not again and seek to oppress but rather show forth that lov loate which continually marked the course of the savior or of the world in entering upon the new year which wits was to be w pregnant with events to the latter day sal bainte ants let them keep in mind always the gloppen goa el of the son of god and not dot suffer the seed which had been sown gown in their hearts to be choked up by the cares of the world and the trials which beset them in the time of trial when dark clouds surrounded them there was one ever ready to help and he would draw near unto them aa they drew near unto him let theoa thena remember that the destroyer was abroad in the land his work was going on in the midst of the saints it was their privilege however to know the divine will anti and when men mein stood up in their midst and proclaimed various doctrines they should test them by the spir spirit t within in conclusion the speaker exhorted his hearers to put their implicit trust in god who adoue could deliver them from all evil the rhe choir sang the anthem the song of the redeemed the benediction was pronounced by elder henry P richards |
