New and Continuous Revelation

My brethren and sisters, I trust that our Father in heaven will bless me with a portion of His Holy Spirit this morning, that I may say that which shall be in accordance with His mind and will, for I realize that except the Lord is with us we can accomplish nothing. ¶

When I behold this vast concourse of people gathered together in this large building, I naturally ask myself the question, What brings them together? And as I am familiar with the fact that you have gathered from the four corners of the earth, and are building up a great commonwealth in western America, I ask myself, What is the great moving force among this people? Elder Merrill has just referred to the great temples that the Latter-day Saints have built in this State, and I am aware that this people are dwelling in upwards of four hundred cities, towns and villages in the Rocky Mountain region. It is truly a remarkable work that is being accomplished by the Latter-day Saints, and I naturally enquire, What is this great work founded upon? I passed a building the other day, and it had poles sticking up against the east and south walls. I looked for a moment at the building, and I discovered that it was going to fall, because the foundation was not good. It was evident, from the appearance of the house, that the more you built upon the walls the greater would be the fall when it should come. In the early history of the Salt Lake Temple there were some large stones put in the foundation which were not sound. President Young discovered this; and although it had cost a great deal to put the foundation in, he ordered it all taken out. What was his object in doing this? It was that there might be a good, solid foundation under that structure, so that when the temple was completed, the foundation would not crack and give way by reason of the immense weight resting upon it. Now that it is completed we can see the wisdom exhibited by President Young at that time. ¶

I desire to compare our Church to a house; and I say unto you that if you are not building your foundation strong and of good material, the greater the house you put upon it the greater will be the fall when it shall come. What kind of a foundation have you? Is it laid correctly? As I understand it, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is built upon the foundation of revelation from God the Eternal Father -- not upon revelation given eighteen hundred years ago; for we would be slow to build a house with stones that had been in a building eighteen hundred years; but upon revelation given in the nineteenth century. In using this word "revelation," I do not refer to it as it is understood by the sectarian world; but I mean new and continued revelation from God the Eternal Father, to guide His people. Are we justified in taking this view of the situation? Let me ask this congregation, What was the Church of Christ built upon in the days of Jesus? This can best be answered by Jesus himself. On one occasion He asked His Apostles, "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" They replied, "Some say that thou art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets." He said, "But whom say ye that I am?" Peter, who was the President of the Apostles, answered him saying, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus then blessed Peter, saying, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona; for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." From this we can see that the Church of Christ in His day was built upon the principle of revelation from God the Eternal Father -- the same principle that made known unto Peter that Jesus was the Christ. ¶

"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; ¶

"The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: ¶

for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. ¶

"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ¶

"Nicodemus said unto him, How can a man be born when he is old can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." ¶

There are many people today exactly in the same position as Nicodemus was. They will have to be born again before they can understand the things of God. But the Apostle Peter had been born of the Spirit. And how did this come upon him It came by revelation from God; and Jesus told him that upon this rock of revelation He would build His Church. That is the kind of foundation which underlies the structure of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ¶

Jesus went still further in blessing Peter. He said: ¶

"And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." ¶

Here was divine authority conferred upon the children of men to act in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ; "for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." ¶

In this day the keys of the kingdom of God were conferred upon the Prophet Joseph Smith. John the Baptist came and conferred the Aaronic Priesthood upon him, and Peter, James and John conferred the Melchisedek Priesthood. Was Joseph Smith authorized to go forth and administer in the ordinances of life and salvation, because God the Eternal Father and His Son Jesus Christ had appeared unto him Oh, no! Before he could do that it was necessary that the keys of the kingdom of heaven should be conferred upon him. After Peter, James and John appeared unto him, Elijah came and gave unto him the keys for the redemption of the dead: and Moses came and delivered unto him the keys of the gathering of Israel in the last days. For behold, my brethren and sisters, that day is at hand which was spoken of by the Prophet Jeremiah: ¶

"Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, the Lord liveth that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; ¶

"But the Lord liveth that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. ¶

"Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them and after will I send for many hunters and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." ¶

This day is at hand. The fishers and the hunters are going from nation to nation, declaring the Gospel of the kingdom of God; for it has been revealed in its fulness in this our day by an angel from God. After the Prophet Joseph Smith had been ordained and set apart to preach the everlasting Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof, he ordained others according to the commandment of God; and today we have hundreds and thousands of the Elders of Israel going forth to the various nations of the earth, lifting up their voices and crying, "Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Jesus tried to gather the people together in His day, but they would not. He wept over the city of Jerusalem, and said: ¶

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" ¶

On another occasion He told the Jews, because they had rejected Him: ¶

"Therefore say I unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof." ¶

After His resurrection, His disciples asked Him, "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom again to Israel?" He answered, "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in His own power." There was a certain way in which the kingdom should be restored to Israel; the Prophets had written about it, and Jesus recognized that. He had told His disciples previously that He came not to do away with the law and the prophets, but to fulfil. "Verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Jesus also prophesied that they would persecute His disciples and cast them out of their synagogues, and that the time would come when they who killed them would think they were doing God's service. Did this come to pass? Yes. All the Apostles were put to death, excepting one man, and he remained on the earth according to the promise of the Savior as recorded in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew. Who was that? John the Revelator. But it seemed like he was destined to suffer; for he was a slave on the Isle of Patmos, working in the lead mines. While there the angels of God ministered unto him, and he was shown many great and glorious things pertaining to the history of the people who should live upon this earth. He described the way in which this kingdom, which Jesus said should be taken from among the Jews, should be restored again to Israel. In the fourteenth chapter of Revelation, he says. ¶

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, "Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." ¶

We testify to you here today that this has been literally fulfilled. The angel Moroni came unto the Prophet Joseph Smith and declared unto him the fulness of the everlasting Gospel, and commanded him to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; and he that believeth not shall be damned." ¶

Some of you have heard that Elder Grant is going to Japan, and you begin to query in your minds, Is this nation of the house of Israel? Is it a proper thing for Elder Grant to go to Japan? I want to tell you that there is no nation on the face of the earth but will hear the everlasting Gospel; for the word of God has gone forth that the Gospel shall be proclaimed unto all nations for a witness; and this was to be a sign of His coming and of the end of the world. Then our minds may be set at rest in regard to Elder Grant going to Japan. ¶

How beautiful is this! We begin now to understand why the Savior instructed His disciples to pray, "Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come." The sectarian world today are all praying for the kingdom of God to come. Let me say to them and to all the world, that God has revealed himself from the heavens in this our day. He has organized His Church and Kingdom upon the earth, for the redemption of the children of men. And it is no longer necessary for you, my brethren and sisters, to ask God the Eternal Father that the kingdom of God may come; but pray that He will prepare you for the coming of the King -- our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For, behold, that day is at our doors. As the Prophet Malachi has said: ¶

"Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me; and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts." ¶

Some will say that this messenger sent to prepare the way was John the Baptist; but I say unto you that Jesus Christ did not come suddenly unto His temple in that day. He grew up as a child, and they said, "Are not these his brothers and His sisters." It was the second coming of Christ that Malachi referred to, as the following will prove to you: ¶

"But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap: ¶

"And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." ¶

All the children of men abided the day of His first coming. They lived with Him, talked with Him. and listened to His instructions; but I say unto you that when He comes the second time, following the testimony of His servants, He will come as a refiner's fire and as fullers' soap. "For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch." ¶

My testimony unto you is that the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is nigh at hand. I testify that we have Prophets, Seers and Revelators among this people, and that Lorenzo Snow is the man who has been called upon to be the mouthpiece of God unto this people. It is as Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." This principle of revelation is the foundation of the Church of Christ. It is the rock that Christ told Peter He would build His Church upon; and upon that rock the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is built. How beautiful is this principle! ¶

How nicely this corresponds with the words of Jesus: ¶

"It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart I will send him unto you. ¶

"Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth; for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come." ¶

This is revelation. This is the power of God unto salvation. This is the principles by which God guideth His Church in every age of the world. I rejoice, my brethren and sisters, that this Church is built upon revelation. I can go further, and say that it is built "upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone." ¶

I pray the Lord to lengthen out the life of President Lorenzo Snow, that he may live to fully satisfy his desires upon the earth and the mind and will of God concerning him; that He will also bless his counselors, according as they need at this very hour, and bless and qualify every one of us to perform our duties in the Church and Kingdom of God. For I say unto you, my brethren and sisters, it is not he that has the gift of prophecy, or the gift of tongues; it is not he that has received the ministration of angels, that will be saved in the Kingdom of God; but it is he that endureth unto the end. Speaking of the time when He should sit on the throne of His glory and judge the children of men, Jesus says: ¶

"Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?" ¶

"And then will I profess unto them. I never knew you: depart from me. ye that work iniquity. ¶

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." ¶

When the Savior came upon the earth, there were men living who held the Priesthood; but would they receive new revelation? No, they would not; but they said, "We have Abraham to our father." John the Baptist rebuked them for their hypocrisy, and said, "Think not to say within yourself, We have Abraham to our father; for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham." Jesus said to His disciples, "Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt hath lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out. and to be trodden under the foot of men." I say unto you that we have men in this day holding the Priesthood after the order of the Son of God, who have lost their savor, and they are good for nothing, but to be cast out. For I tell you, the Lord will not justify any man, no matter what Priesthood he holds, except he hold himself ready to keep the commandments of God, to be humble, and to be obedient to his seniors in the Priesthood. It is an eternal principle, that he that humbleth himself shall be exalted, and he that exalteth himself shall be abased. Jesus descended below all things, that He might rise above all things; and the only way we can be justified in the sight of God is to be humble and obedient. Instead of being determined to have our own will, let us bring our will, our passions and our ambitions into subjection to the mind and will of God as manifested through His servants who preside over us, and we will be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. But if we determine to have our own way and work out our own will, we will stand condemned; for the Lord will not justify any man in becoming a law unto himself. ¶

God bless you and fill you with His Holy Spirit, and help us all to keep His commandments, that we may be saved and exalted in His kingdom, which is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶