The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-03-28

Our G cd we raise to Thee,
Thanks for Thy blessings free,
We here enjoy
Elder Edward Snelgrove offered
prayer. The choir then sang:
Behold the great Redeemer die.
A broken law to satisfy.
BIsHoP . F. WHITNEY addressed the
congregation. He asked for the faith
and prayers of his hearers, that his
words might not be mere empty
sounds, but that they might be indeed
the words of life and salvation
prompted by the Spirit of God. They
had left their homes and the cares OF
the world to come up to the house OF
the Lord to be taught of Him. to re-
ceive a renewal OF strength and to put
on more firmly the armor of the gospels
that, during the week upon which they
were about to enter, they might be
better qualified to engage in the battle
of life. IF the people more fully
realized the importance of assembling
together upon the Lords day to par.
take of the sacrament, receive instruc-
ton and commune with the spirit OF
the he sVens that they might receive the
blessings which are promised as tn
result of obedience, they would be more
alive to the great responsibility which
attaches to the calling and profession
of Latter-day Saint.
The speaker proceeding IN his re-
marks SAID. Either this work is an i'm
posture, or it is, as we claim 1t to be,
the most important work that God has
ever commenced among the human
family, and we certainly should be IN a
posiUon TO decide and know for our
selves with of these propositions is the
tire one. There shoulu b no hating
between these two great questions.
There should be no middle ground for
the Latter-day Saints to stand upon.
We should give our Heavenly Father
no rest day nor night until He revealed
to US of a surety whether TINS tblnz Is
false or true; whether 1t is indeed the
work of the great GOd-the marvellous
work and wonder which HIS prophets
have predicted, and before which the
wisdom of the wise should parish,
and the understanding Of the prudent
should be hid-or whether it IS a
GOuUkGTlSlE Ol IIUlht SLIu4C anu q w
lusion for the souls of men. 1t de-
wolves upon US as a solemn duty, and
upon the world 10 whom this gospel
shall come, to examine it upon It's mer-
it's and either be sue of one thing or
the other. If this be what it claims to
be, the revealed Will of God out OF
hea yen, man can nei her afford to
despise it nor to fight against 1t. II 1t
be the work of God, it will prevail, but
if il be the work # man, it will come to
naught of its own accord. II it be
what we say it is, We are only worthy
of itii we are full of life and light, as
the work is itself. There must be
harmony between our profession and
practice. Ours must be living faith
otherwise, we are unfit to take part IN
such work.
1t is related that when this great
country was but sparsely peopled.
come of the New England settlers,
trading with the Indians, often used
tricks and deCeptionsto gam from them
the lands of their f0refatbers. The
Indians were very Uuch surprised ct
the power of gunpowder and the use Of
firearms which were entirely new 10
q them; and, noticing yhese effective
weapons of the pioneers, they desired
to know the secret of this power OF de-
struction and to become possessed Of
it. The settlers sold the Indians small
quantities of powder at exhCrbitant
prices, and told them that if they
would plant it, it would spring
forth as the grass or trees
and bear fruit after its kind
The poor ignorant sayages, believing
the words of their white brethren, took
the powder and planted it, but reaped
no result. Their faith was not based
on an eternal principle; it was not a
faith powerful with the heavens to
produce the end sought for. Thus we
see there are different kinds of faith it
is for us to ascertain what the true
faith is, faith based upon eternal
principles, which will bring forth the
results desired.
No one VINO has a heart Of generosity
q mind of intelligence, a soul large
enough to reach out from his own I'M
mediate surroundings can doubt Tor
moment that there are thousands and
millions of Gods creatures who have
lived and died with sincere be-
lief that their faith was the
only true faith under heaven
Amongst all the shades Of religious
opinion, the votaries of each sect have
nEPD equally SLT6uuHuS pcE po, III dc-
sertiDg the claims of their own peculiar
creed to truth and divinity. Now, the
Latter-day Saints are prepared 10 adm
that there is truth in all systems of re-
iioion that are capable of making men
better. that are capable of keeping alive
faith in God in the human heart; for ii
Is of the utmost Importance that men
sbould be believers and not doubters
What did doubt ever achieve? The
men who have moved this world from
fbe beginning are men who have be-
Waved not doubted. Doubts are traitors
thew are the blight and mildew
of the souls of men; while faith is as
the sun from heaven. and as the water
streams that nourish the roots of the
tree. God has said that all things are
nossibIe to them that believe; but what
promise has He ever given to man i"
Feturn for his doubtiugs2 God hor ors
thefaith and sincerity of every creature
He has made. He resrects the sincerity
at the ignorant Hindoo bowlng down