DISCOURSE

Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff,
Sunday Morning, October 9th, 1892,
at the Semi-Annual Conference, held
in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City,
Utah.

I feel disposed to try to address this
assembly of Latter-day Saints for
a while this morning; but I wish to say
that I need not only the strict atten-
tion but the faith and prayers of the
Saints of God, for no man can fill the
place which I or these Apostles occupy,
to fulfil the command of God and the
requirements of the Latter-day Saints,
except by the inspiration of Almighty
God. This is a truth that has remained
on the earth from the day of Father
Adam to this hour.

I have some things upon my mind I
would like to lay before this assembly
if I can get sufficient of the spirit of
inspiration to do it. To commence
with, I want to bear my testimony to
these Latter-day Saints and to the
world that I am held responsible be-
fore God, the angels and the heavenly
hosts for the testimony which I bear
before you; and so is every man who
bears record of the Son of God and of
the work of God in this or any other
generation. These Latter-day Saints
bear record to the world, and have
borne record for almost a generation
past, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet
of God; that they know this work is of
God, and [t]hat this is the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
They are held responsible for this, and
if they bear a true testimony, the na-
tions of the earth who hear that testi-
mony will be held responsible for the
use they make of it. Do you ask me
how I know this is the work of God,
and that Joseph Smith is a Prophet
of God? I will tell you how
I know. I know it by the revelations
of Jesus Christ and by the inspiration
of the Lord. If I may be allowed to
refer to myself without being consider-
ed egotistical, I will tell you why I
bear this testimony.

Eighty-five years have passed over
my head since I first tabernacled in
the flesh. Almost sixty years of that
period I have been a member of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. During that time I have borne
some portion of the Holy Priesthood,
and for fifty-three years I have occu-
pied the position of the Apostleship, in
connection with my brethren. I have
also traveled abroad and at home. I
have been taught from my childhood
up by the revelations of God in the re-
cords of divine truth that have been
given to us, that there is one God, and
that there is one Jesus Christ, who
is the Savior of the world, and the
only Savior pertaining to this world
and to the redemption thereof. I have
been taught that there is one Priest-
hood, in its two divisions. I have been
taught that there is one Holy Ghost,
and that there is one Gospel and one
set of ordinances for the salvation of
the whole posterity of Adam, and only
one. I have been taught that these
ordinances are the same in every age
of the world. Whoever reads the New
Testament can see the testimony of
the Apostles that there was but one
Gospel in that day and generation; and
that Gospel was taught by Adam him-
self to his posterity. The same Gospel
was taught by Moses, and by all the
patriarchs and prophets down to the
days of Jesus Christ. There was but
the one Gospel. But the promise was
that whoever received that Gospel
should receive the Holy Ghost and the
gifts thereof, and these gifts were made
manifest from generation to generation
when the God of heaven had a people
on the face of the earth.

In traveling during these sixty years
that I have been in the Church, abroad
and at home, I have been associated
with the Elders of Israel in the ad-
ministration of these ordinances to the
human family. What has been the
result? Remember now what I to[l]d
you, that I am held responsible for my
testimony. I have traveled, I may say,
in the midst of visions, in the midst of
the administration of angels, in the
midst of the power of God. In connec-
tion with my brethren, I have laid
hands upon the sick, and they have re-
covered. We have laid hands upon
the blind, and they have seen; upon
the deaf, and they have heard; upon
the lame, and they have walked; upon
those possessed with devils, and they
were cast out; and even unto the resur-
rection of the dead. Those gifts and
graces that have followed the servants
of God in every age of the world
have been associated with this
Church from the day of its organ-
ization until this hour. These are
truths in the sight of high heaven, and
I will meet them there when I go to
the other side of the veil. Therefore, if
there are any strangers here, I bear
testimony to these things, for I know
they are true. The inspiration of the
Holy Ghost deceives no man, and
when any people receive this Gospel
and this Priesthood, they know for
themselves whether the work is of God
or not. Yes, we lay hands upon the
sick, and while we do so, the Spirit and
power of God comes upon us, from the
crown of our head to the soles of our
feet. We lay hands upon men to or-
dain them to the Priesthood, and the
power of God rests upon the men who
administer. These thirty thousand
Elders who dwell here in the moun-
tains of Israel, when they go to the
nations of the earth and get up and
declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ
to the world, the Holy Ghost
is with them. They bear a testimony
that rejoices the hearts of men, and
men receive that testimony, and ev-
erything they promise them is fulfilled
to the very letter.

This is the reason why I know that
Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God,
and that this is the Church of God on
the earth. And I wish many times
that I had power to express to the
Latter-day Saints what is in my heart,
and what the vision of my mind opens
unto me in those seasons when I am
inspired with the Spirit and power of
God to see what lies before this people
and before this generation. Oh! ye Lat-
ter-day Saints, you talk about revelation,
and wonder if there is any revelation.
Why, bless your souls, say nothing
about the Apostles and Elders around
me, these mountains contain thousands
upon thousands of devoted women,
holy women, righteous women, virtu-
ous women, who are filled with
the inspiration of Almighty God. Yes,
these women have brought forth an
army of sons and daughters in these
mountains by the power of God, and
these sons and daughters partake of
the inspiration of their mothers, as
well as of their fathers. I will ask you,
what are these Apostles doing when
they rise up and preach to you? What
are these Elders of Israel doing when
they bear record here to the Latter-day
Saints and to the world, if they have
not inspiration and rev[e]lation? There
is not a man on the footstool of God
Almighty today who has power to
preach the Gospel and testify to its
truth, only by the inspiration of the
Holy Ghost. Yes, we have revelation.
The Church of God could not live
twenty-four hours without revelation.
We do not have as much as we ought
to have; and when I look at the work
that has been piled up for these Latter-
day Saints to bear off in the world, I
feel as though we need a good deal of

DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, Sunday Morning, October 9th, 1892, at the Semi-Annual Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Utah.

I feel disposed to try to address this assembly of Latter-day Saints for awhile this morning; but I wish to say that I need not only the strict attention but the faith and prayers of the Saints of God, for no man can fill the place which I or these Apostles occupy, to fulfil the command of God and the requirements of the Latter-day Saints, except by the inspiration of Almighty God. This is a truth that has remained on the earth from the day of Father Adam to this hour.

I have some things upon my mind I would like to lay before this assembly if I can get sufficient of the spirit of inspiration to do it. To commence with, I want to bear my testimony to these Latter-day Saints and to the world that I am held responsible before God, the angels and the heavenly hosts for the testimony which I bear before you; and so is every man who bears record of the Son of God and of the work of God in this or any other generation. These Latter-day Saints bear record to the world, and have borne record for almost a generation past, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God; that they know this work is of God, and hat this is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are held responsible for this, and if they bear a true testimony, the nations of the earth who hear that testimony will be held responsible for the use they make of it. Do you ask me how I know this is the work of God, and that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God? I will tell you how I know. I know it by the revelations of Jesus Christ and by the inspiration of the Lord. If I may be allowed to refer to myself without being considered egotistical, I will tell you why I bear this testimony.

Eighty-five years have passed over my head since I first tabernacled in the flesh. Almost sixty years of that period I have been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. During that time I have borne some portion of the Holy Priesthood, and for fifty-three years I have occupied the position of the Apostleship, in connection with my brethren. I have also traveled abroad and at home. I have been taught from my childhood up by the revelations of God in the records of divine truth that have been given to us, that there is one God, and that there is one Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of the world, and the only Savior pertaining to this world and to the redemption thereof. I have been taught that there is one Priesthood, in its two divisions. I have been taught that there is one Holy Ghost, and that there is one Gospel and one set of ordinances for the salvation of the whole posterity of Adam, and only one. I have been taught that these ordinances are the same in every age of the world. Whoever reads the New Testament can see the testimony of the Apostles that there was but one Gospel in that day and generation; and that Gospel was taught by Adam himself to his posterity. The same Gospel was taught by Moses, and by all the patriarchs and prophets down to the days of Jesus Christ. There was but the one Gospel. But the promise was that whoever received that Gospel should receive the Holy Ghost and the gifts thereof, and these gifts were made manifest from generation to generation when the God of heaven had a people on the face of the earth.

In traveling during these sixty years that I have been in the Church, abroad and at home, I have been associated with the Elders of Israel in the administration of these ordinances to the human family. What has been the result? Remember now what I told you, that I am held responsible for my testimony. I have traveled, I may say, in the midst of visions, in the midst of the administration of angels, in the midst of the power of God. In connection with my brethren, I have laid hands upon the sick, and they have recovered. We have laid hands upon the blind, and they have seen; upon the deaf, and they have heard; upon the lame, and they have walked; upon those possessed with devils, and they were cast out; and even unto the resurrection of the dead. Those gifts and graces that have followed the servants of God in every age of the world have been associated with this Church from the day of its organization until this hour. These are truths in the sight of high heaven, and I will meet them there when I go to the other side of the veil. Therefore, if there are any strangers here, I bear testimony to these things, for I know they are true. The inspiration of the Holy Ghost deceives no man, and when any people receive this Gospel and this Priesthood, they know for themselves whether the work is of God or not. Yes, we lay hands upon the sick, and while we do so, the Spirit and power of God comes upon us, from the crown of our head to the soles of our feet. We lay hands upon men to ordain them to the Priesthood, and the power of God rests upon the men who administer. These thirty thousand Elders who dwell here in the mountains of Israel, when they go to the nations of the earth and get up and declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world, the Holy Ghost is with them. They bear a testimony that rejoices the hearts of men, and men receive that testimony, and everything they promise them is fulfilled to the very letter.

This is the reason why I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, and that this is the Church of God on the earth. And I wish many times that I had power to express to the Latter-day Saints what is in my heart, and what the vision of my mind opens unto me in those seasons when I am inspired with the Spirit and power of God to see what lies before this people and before this generation. Oh! ye Latter-day Saints, you talk about revelation, and wonder if there is any revelation. Why, bless your souls, say nothing about the Apostles and Elders around me, these mountains contain thousands upon thousands of devoted women, holy women, righteous women, virtuous women, who are filled with the inspiration of Almighty God. Yes, these women have brought forth an army of sons and daughters in these mountains by the power of God, and these sons and daughters partake of the inspiration of their mothers, as well as of their fathers. I will ask you, what are these Apostles doing when they rise up and preach to you? What are these Elders of Israel doing when they bear record here to the Latter-day Saints and to the world, if they have not inspiration and revelation? There is not a man on the footstool of God Almighty today who has power to preach the Gospel and testify to its truth, only by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. Yes, we have revelation. The Church of God could not live twenty-four hours without revelation. We do not have as much as we ought to have; and when I look at the work that has been piled up for these Latter-day Saints to bear off in the world, I feel as though we need a good deal of