Show DISCOURSE delivered vered at the general conference ol of the church in the me tabernacle salt lake city saturday october 1895 by ELDER FRANCIS M LYMAN REPORTED BY BV ARTHUR WINTER I 1 pray that the spirit of the lord may rest upon us throughout the remainder of our conference as it has been upon the brethren who have already spoken the the gathering of the latter day saints in in conference makes very important ac occasions casiono they are for the transaction of business and the giving of instructions that the people may receive frequently the true sound that the keynote may be given to them and that the latter day saints may enjoy the holy K spirit so that they can always discern the truth and then they are not easily deceived in legard to doctrine and principle pertaining to the plan of lite life and salvation the revelation requires requires par ticul arly that the elders upon whose shoulders rest the responsibilities of the kingdom should meet together frequently in general conference we gather twice a 13 year in stake conferences four times a year and at these gatherings all business is transacted and it is done by common consent cop sent every member ot of the church is entitled to a voice voice in the traps transaction action of church business whether in the augrum quorums of the priesthood in the gatherings of the people m in wards and in stakes or as a whole church no man is held in p position I 1 in this church who h has not the tellow fellowship dip ot of the people ind and men in this church never lose the fellowship ot of the people so long as they al do 40 right for we tab latter latier apy saints have the holy ghost as their and the ibe holy ghost comprehend bj not only doctrine and principled principle but men so efm that men who are called to preside over 1 us are read of the holy ghost if they cf have bave weaknesses the saints discover them and they have confidence in men in proportion to their integrity to the rause cause if men live their religion the people love them and listen to them if men do not live according to their professions fes ies they lose caste amona among the people it is singular that the latter day saints can discern so carefully care luly and particularly 1 ticul arly the conditions condi dons of one another and how r adaily they will detect error false doctrine or evil that may arise or be presented among the people by false teachers every latter day saint is entitled to the presence of the holy spirit to give him understanding understand me inz and wisdom and na no latter day saint need to be led astray antray by false teachers lor for the spirit of the lord being their corn com panion they are entitled to comprehend the truth and to detect error and to know their status before the lord day by day but in order to enjoy the spirit ot of the lord as our heavenly father has designed we should do it is really necessary that we should serve the lord that we should honor him and keep his command commandments commandment men ts that tha t we should be very careful in our lives live s and that our hearts should not be set upon the things of this world but that we should seek to lay up treasures in heaven the wa way treasures are laid up in heaven as I 1 I 1 understand it is by men doing day by day the good that opens up belore before them laboring to improve and to elevate society if society is corrupted by the spirit of I 1 lying yin 1 then it is the duty of every man zo who bears the Pries priesthood tho od and every person who has embraced the truth to operate against the spirit of lying and to teach truth if there is a spirit of infidelity afflicting the people then every man should be nerved against infidelity and labor to promote faith in the hearts of the people for it is not possible to please god without faith it is not po possible sible to please our heavenly father without the spirit of truth and honesty of virtue and uprightness the source of happiness to mankind we are told in the scriptures is the favor ot of god if we please him he will favor us I 1 presume that every latter day saint under the sound souad of my voice today has had experience enough to know that the favor of the lord is is not upon us when we do wrong I 1 take it that mat we have all alf done wrong enough to know this I 1 take it also that we have all done well and wrought righteousness enough to know that the favor of heaven beaven is upon us when we do right why shall we do wrong why shall we nut not listen to the counsels of our heavenly father and do right all the time why is it that we are not doing right constantly st Is there any power given to satan to compel us to do wrong Is there any power given to satan to compel up us to break the sabbath day and not to keep it hol holy Is power given to satan that he con can compel us to oe be virtuous ua unjust or untruthful I 1 have never found it so in my experience I 1 have never been compelled to do wrong what wrong I 1 have done I 1 have done with my eyes open I 1 have known what was right I 1 have known what was wrong I 1 have been thoroughly taught by my parents and by my brethren I 1 have been i taught by the conscience that the lord has placed within me and when that conscience has been lighted fighter by the spirit and power ot of god I 1 have been able to comprehend very easia easily what was wrong and what was right ado I 1 do declare in all to berness before this vast congregation this morning that every man has been graciously endowed by our heavenly father with the power to i do his mind and will every man ina in a normal con has the power to do right when the gospel has been taught us we have exercised our reason and judgment when the scriptures have been expounded to us we have believed them men sent of the lord and commissioned to teach and expound the scripture have taught us that it was necessary that we should believe in god our father who dwells in the heavens and we have been willing to listen and to treasure up the truth that they taught us and to believe 1 it t the latter day saints today believe in god our heavenly father and that we are in reality his children that he is our head and that we are indebted to him for life and being upon this earth he has laid down the plan of life by which we may be saved and brought back into his presence by which we may become as he is and inherit his power his greatness his authority and the riches ot eternity he has made all these things plain to us and he has sent into the world his son our elder brother to be our savior we had come in a fallen condition adam came and fell fel that we might be by that fall came death and by death our tabernacles lire are placed in the grave returned to mother earth there to remain until the resurrection and the resurrection was brought to pass by the death and suffering of the son of god our elder brother jesus christ shed his blood for our hiis sins not tor for his own for he was immaculate and without blemish and lie he laid down his life that you and I 1 should be re deemed from that death which had come upon us iss because of the fall of adam by ilia his death are we redeemed by his blood are we cleansed from the conditions ot of the fall for jesus broke the bonds of death and as alt all men are consigned to the grave because of df fall all ot of adam in like manner are ail woo men raised from the grave through the suffer ing and death of our lord and Mg master ister jesus christ every human being that nas has been given a tabernacle upon this earth will have that tabernacle resurrect v ed and will enter into it again and appear belore before god to be judged for the deeds done in the body in likeness of the death and burial and resurrection of the son of god the lord has arranged in the plan of ahe that we should lay our bodies in the watery grave grave andt bat as he came forth out of 0 the grave to new ness ot of life so should we come from the watery grave into newness of life and to walk no more after the ways ot of men it is required that we should not be of the world we should not be like the world As in times past we were sinners and transgressors and were thoughtless and indifferent in regard to the principles of life and salvation now these principles should be our theme now we should love them where before we sought to lay up treasures on earth now we should seek to lay up treasures in heaven our chief object should be the accomplishment of gods purposes upon the earth we should not live for the building of railroads and the development of mines and farms and the building of houses etc whatever we do of this kind should be done with the view of accomplishing the purposes of the lord in the earth and for maeng man happy and bringing about that was intended in our being upon the earth As adam fell that we might come to the earth and obtain tabernacles sowe have come to the earan that we might have joy in the sence of our father who dwells in g presence Ere eaven that is the design of our father and the object of our being therefore our hearts must not be s set t upon the things of this world B but ut we seek first the kingdom of god and his righteousness all other things that are necessary for us our father will add unto us though he may not accomplish it this year he will do some of it this year and some next year till finally we will inherit all things but in order that we have relief from our sins and comeback come back into inlo the presence of godat god it is necessary not only that we should believe and be ba baptized sized but that we should repent also follow flow ing the doctrine of faith in god is the doctrine ol of repentance as peter declared on the day of pentecost unto those who had slain the savior or had con dented to his death they were gathered in great numbers and many were convinced under the instructions ot of the inspired apostle of god they rhey were pricked jn in their hearts and said men and brethren what shall we do peter peler answered them repent and be baptized every one oi of you in the name of jesus christ for the remission of sins sins and ye shall receive the gift of the holy v ghost what a glorious promise that was to the people on that day clay if it was the truth inthe in the days of peter isay I 1 say it is the truth today it 11 it was necessary then that a man should repent of his i sins and should humble himself before the lord and enter into the waters of baptism lor for ot of and receive the holy in order that he might alease please god and know his mind and will 1 say it is the same today the gospel given then is the gospel given today for the gospel revealed to us is that given by jesus christ himself and he has given to 10 us the holy ghost that precious gift that was so valuable in those days and that would remind and bring to the attention of the followers ot of the savior all that he had taught them and show them things to come now we have these books that were spoken of yesterday the bible the book of mormon and the book of doctrine and covenants and they are very valuable but I 1 say this church could not run an hour with all the boons that were ever published it is not possible to run the church of god with books it must be by the living oracles of god it must be by the men who are authorized by the son of god himself to stand at the head of the people and to teach them you cannot organize a ward you cannot organize a quorum you cannot do one thing in building up the kingdom of god only by the living oracles you must have them all the time where a church has not the living oracles where a church has not men who speak as one having authority as jesus spoke I 1 say sav that that is not the church of god there must be the men of god there must be the apostleship there must be the priesthood there must be the organization of the church in all its perfection and power that is what god has revealed to us and it is the reason that this work has prospered has it ever grown less no if there has ever been a falling away of one has there not been an addition of a hundred the church has increased and grown right straight along and there are people by tens of thousands in these valleys who know the gospel is true if any man has received the gospel of jesus christ and has lived it he knows the gospel is true that knowledge is a part of the work it is a part of the principles that men should know ot of the doctrine you take every assertion of the doctrine laid down by the son of god and you will find that he makes it positive on the day of pentecost peter said repent and be baptized every one of you in the name ol of jesus christ fir the remission of you sins and ye shall receive the gift of the holy ghost he did not or haps you will obtain that precious boon but he said ye shall receive the gift of the holy ghost when the son ot of man himself was questioned by the jews who wanted to know why he came to teach them when he was not an educated man and had bad not been finished in the schools of the day he said my doc rine is not mine but his that sent me it any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of god or whether I 1 speak of myself now I 1 say that the latter day saints have received the doctrine and have done the will of god and know ot of the doctrine they have gathered together and they have built temples and are laboring for the salvation of this world today as no other people on this earth are doing and as no other people can do for there is no other people that has the gospel all of them have some truth it would be a miserable system of salvation if no truth were in it but I 1 say it if you were to nine tenths of the truths try to make up mans salvation you would tail fail you must have the whole truth or the system is not complete and perfect I 1 speak with all due respect ot of the religious denominations of the world I 1 have the same proto profound und respect for every denomination that I 1 ask them to grant me for I 1 am pleased to have peo pie christian in their feeling and to have them believe in jesus christ it is much better than to have them infidel but when you find the church that has the authority of god with whom god is laboring all the time you will see men who stand up like men with authority and with power and not as the scribes and pharis pharisees ees we do know ot what we teach and we have hundreds of thousands of people today that can bear us witness would I 1 dare stand before this congregation if it were not full of people who know that what I 1 say is true thousands here would hold up their right hands and take a solemn oath if it were necessary that they know this is the gospel that jesus has established that it is his church and that his purposes are being fulfilled in the earth what have we left our homes for had we no need to come up here only to do the will of the lord the spirit of this work gathers the people we never took look up an argument with the people to convince them that they need to come here why in many instances we have to try and quiet their nerves and keep them from gather ingin ing in order that the church abroad may be strong enough to sustain the elders in the missionary field I 1 have thought we have depleted our missions more than we ought to have done I 1 am not questioning my brethren who preside over me and have directed these affairs but these have been the sentiments of my heart that we have allowed the people to gather more rapidly than was wise in view of the desire to spread abroad the principles of eternal truth in the world now we stand before the world and are willing to be questioned in private and in public and we say to the world believe on the lord jesus christ repent of your sins and be baptized for the remission of boose sins and you shall obtain a remission of sins and an J entrance into the kingdom ot of god and I 1 you shall receive the holy ghost and shall know of the doctrine |