The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-04-08
Bishop orson f. Whitney

/ ~ HIL VI 4OOOs
Bishop Orson T. Whitney
then said: 1t is the request of Presi.
dent Snow that I should occupy a por-
Ton OF this meeting in some remarks,
supplementary TO the epistIe which you
nave Just heard read. And l assure
you, my brethren and sisters, that do
this only in the hope and assurance that
you Will sustain me by your faith and
prayers, that what may say, may be
the offspring of the spirit of truth, the
splrI- OF intelligence, which proceedeth
tortn from the Father and maketh mani
lest the things of God.
There is no subject of such supreme
Importance to the Latter-day Saints as
the possession OF the Holy Ghost; to
secure which, has been so strongly en-
Joined upon US by the epistle of the
Twelve Apostles.
We are left in the darkness of this
world, with this as our guide; and
especially, as has been already ex-
| planned, IN the present time. We have
been left more to ourselves than ever
before, to listen to the promptings Of
that Spirit which never lies. or, to Shut
our ears, when we so elect, to that
tongue, that silent. though eloquent
tongue, which speaks with the most
oracular music to the soul of man.
We are told that there is light that
lighteth every man that cometh into
the world. And wherever we go, upon
this broad earth, this foot-stool
OF our Father. this abiding place
OF Hischlldren, we will find his offspring
manifesting, to a greater or a less de-
gree, the operations of this Spirit, which
lighteth all mankind in various degrees
of intensity. But the great difference
between US, as Saints of the Most High,
and all the rest of mankind, is this, that
there has been opened up, in these
days,
CHANNEL OF COMMUNICATION
between the heaYens and the earth. The
power and authority of the holy priest
hood has been restored to the earth for
the building up Of the Zion of God.
Holy men have gone forth preaching q
restored gospel-a new and old gospel,
for it is both the new and everlasting
covenant-one and Interchangeable. The
only difference in the restoration Of the
gospel in these days and its restoration
to earth in the days of the Sayior-for
it is the same gospel come again, and it
was the same gospel then as had been
upon The earth in different ages;
preached and practiced by holy men OF
God in various ages of the world; be-
lieved by Adam; practiced by him and
his righteous posterity; believed and
obeyed by Noah and his
sons. believed and obeyed by
Abraham, and many of his
descendants; possessed by Moses, who
led the children of Israel out of bond
age into, or to the borders of the
Dra,,Tca1 T0,I T0T 49,
the only reason why the gospel was
taken from the earth at that time, was
because of the unbelef and hard
ness of heart of the people. Therefore,
they could not be sanctiied by that
gospel. 1t twas taken into heaven when
Moses, the great laW-giver. and when
the Melchisidec priesthood was taken
into the heavens, leaving the law of
carnal commandments and the priest
hood OF Aaron as a schoolmaster and
whip, so to speak, to bring the DISC
bedient to a state of wisdom and hu-
mility and righteousness to prepare
their descendents, in day to come, for
the fullness of the everlasting gospel, as
then restored. The only difference, 1
repeat, between the restoration of this
gospel, which the Latter-day Saints are
preaching, and the RESERVATIONS which
have gone before, is this: That never
again, until this earth is redeemed and
made like a sea of glass. mingled with
FIRE, as
A CELESTIAL ABODE
for celestial beings-never again
will this gospel or this priesthood
be taken from the earth, until
the world is redeemed from the chains
of wickedness; until righteousness and
truth have swept the earth as with q
flood, to gather the elect of God from
the four corners OF the earth to the holy
city which he will prepare. That His
sons might grid up their loins and be
looking forward to the time of His
coming; when He will come in the
clouds of heaven, with ten thousand of
His Saints, in power and great glory, to
take the reins of government of this
earth and establish reign of righteous
ness, of purity and of peace, from the
rising to the setting of the sun. And
this planet will be sanctifed by obedi-
ence to the same truths that have
sanctiied other worlds that now glitter
like Jewels in the blue dome of heaven
above US, redeemed and celestialized
worlds, the home of the children of
God; the home of our brothers, our
sisters, our fathers, our mothers, who
have been redeemed from the beginning
ever since the word of God went
forth, "we will go down, for there
is space there, and we will make an
earth upon which these may dwell"
The Lord showed unto Abraham the
which He had organized
BEFORE THE WORLD WAS,
and revealed unto him many precious
principles regarding this earth and its
redemption. He also spoke to Enoch,
and Moses, when He took them up into
an exceeding high mountain and con-
versed with them, ard showed them
from the beginning to the end of time,
and swore to them by Himself that He
would come in the latter days, and
plant His feet upon the earth. "And."
says He, TO Enoch, when my people
shall gather together. and build up
Zion on earth, then shalt thou and thy
city descend and meet them there" We
will fall upon their necks-they will fall
upon our necks-we will clasp their
hands and weep for joy, for, ''for a
thousand years shall the earth rest''
Continued ON Fifth Pare,