To-day we occupy a peculiar position as a people—as Latter-day Saints here in these mountains. Here is a people growing up in the earth who are organ- ized into a Church, called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. How did the organization of that Church come about? Why, the God of heaven has proclaimed through His prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others, whose writings are contained within the lids of the Bible, that in the latter days He would set His hand to call forth His Church out of the wild- erness and out of darkness and error, and establish it upon the foundation of truth, Christ Jesus being the chief cor- ner stone. The God of heaven also proclaimed through Daniel, 4,000 years ago, that in the latter days He would set up a kingdom which should never be destroyed; and the kingdom should not be left to other people, but it should break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it should stand forever.

Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God. He was a man raised up by the power of God. He received the testimony of the Gos- pel of Jesus Christ by visions and rev- elation as did John the Revelator. Angels appeared unto him and taught him the ways of life. Those men who held the Priesthood—who were put to death in the flesh for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ—vis- ited Joseph Smith. John the Baptist conferred upon him the Aaronic Priest- hood; Peter, James and John, the Apostleship and Melchisedek Priest- hood; and all the Prophets who held any keys and powers belonging to the Gospel, these also visited Joseph Smith, and conferred upon him those keys and powers and authority to administer them on the earth. These are eternal truths, as the God of heaven lives, and they will prevail whether men believe them or not, or whether the wicked war against them or not. These truths belong to God Himself. He is the au- thor of them. He has given forth cer- tain decrees, and they will have their fulfillment in the earth.

There is no power organized beneath the hea- vens that can stay the hand of Almighty God. He has set His hand to carry out His purposes. The world hate this people, because the Lord has called them forth out of the world, the same as He called His disciples of old. This is the position we occupy to-day as His people.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the law of salvation. No man can be saved without it. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth—to Jew or Greek, Cath- olic, Methodist, Baptist, or any other sect or party on the face of the earth.

We, as Latter-day Saints, are called upon to build up Zion. We have been gathered to be instructed by inspiration and through the medium of the Holy Priesthood in the principles of eternal truth.

The probation we are called upon to pass through, is intended to elevate us so that we can dwell in the presence of God our Father. And that eternal variety of character which existed in the heavens among the spirits—from God upon His throne down to Lucifer the son of the morning—exists here upon the earth. That variety will re- main upon the earth in the creations of God, and for what I know, through- out the endless ages of eternity. Men will occupy different glories and po- sitions according to their lives—ac- cording to the law they keep in the flesh.

We are living at the commencement of the Millennium, and near the close of the 6000th year of the world's history. Tremendous events await this generation. You can read an account of them in the revelations of St. John; the opening of the seals; the blowing of the trumpets; the pouring out of the plagues; the judgments of God which will overtake the wicked when Great Babylon comes in remem- drance before God, and when the sword that is bathed in heaven shall fall on Idumea, or the world who shall be able to abide these things? Here we are living in the midst of these tremendous events.

I say to the Latter- day Saints, you are required by the God of Israel, your Heavenly Father, by his Son Jesus Christ, by the holy angels, and by every principle of eter- nal truth to exercise faith in the revel- ations of God, for they will be fulfilled as the Lord lives. God is with this people. But we are required to heark- en to his voice, obey his command- ments, and humble ourselves before Him.

God is our friend, our law- giver, our deliverer. If the Lord can- not sustain His work, we certainly cannot. But He can. He has always done it, and will do it to the end. Therefore I say to the Saints, fear not. Trust in God. Let not your hearts be faint. Let your prayers ascend to the ears of the Lord of Sabbaoth day and night. Ask what you want. When you do that, the Lord will answer your prayers, if you ask what is right. There is where our strength lies. It is in God.

But I do look upon the Latter- day Saints as occupying a most glori- ous position in this day and age of the world. This is the first time since God created the world that he has ever es- tablished a dispensation to remain on the earth until the coming of the Son of Man—to remain in power and strength and glory, until the Millennium, until He reigns whose right it is to reign. Behold what lies before you! Behold the power of God! Behold the prosperity of Zion! Behold the bles- sings which have rested upon your houses, your lands, your flocks and herds, your children—the blessings of the earth as well as of the heavens—in this mighty barren desert! Then why should we have any doubts or fears with regard to the Kingdom of God? No! As a people we should rise up in faith and power before God and make our wants known, and leave our destiny in His hands.

I would to God that our nation could under- stand the blessings they enjoy. There is no nation on the face of the earth that has the same liberty that is guar- anteed to us by the Constitution of our country.

I pray God my heavenly Father, that His blessing may rest upon us as Lat- ter-day Saints; that we may compre- hend and understand our position, our duties and our responsibilities to God. When I look, brethren and sisters, up- on this handful of men and women here in these mountains of Israel, say 150,- 000, out of the fourteen hundred mil- lion people that dwell on the earth; when I realize the responsibility that God has laid upon the Latter-day Saints, the responsibility of building up this great Kingdom of our God, of proclaiming the principles of eternal life, light and truth to the world; when I reflect upon these things I ask my- self the question—What manner of men ought we to be?

Any man who will seek to save his life and desert the princi- ples of the Gospel, is not worthy of eternal life.

No matter what we may be called to pass through. Let us maintain our integrity to God. Where is the man whose mind has been lit up by the inspiration of God to com- prehend the celestial kingdom, or the celestial law, or the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who can bear the idea of pur- suing a course whereby he will be cut off from inheriting the blessings for which he has hoped in the future? No, I would rather die a thousand deaths than be deprived of those bles- sings. We have a long time to live when we get through here. There is all eternity before us. It will pay you, it will pay me—no matter what comes, no matter what this nation may do to oppress us—to be true and faithful to our covenants, to our wives and child- ren, to our God and to our country; it will pay us to be faithful to the end.