Defense of the Faith and the Saints (Volume 2 of 2)

by B. H. Roberts

A discourse in the Salt Lake Mormon Tabernacle, January 16, 1910. (Reported by F. W. Otterstrom.)

I.

"Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?

"Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries, either a vine, figs? So can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh."

Such is the language of James, whose epistle appears in the New Testament Scripture; and the passage condensed simply means, of course, that an impure fountain sends forth not pure streams, neither does a good fountain send forth impure streams; such as the fountain is, such also is the stream.

I have been somewhat surprised, if not amazed of late at the bitterness that has been manifested in the discussion in our local prints, of some doctrines and some of the history of this great movement known as Mormonism. There has been lately a raking up of old past controversies, until one would think that we would be under the necessity of fighting again the old battles of 60 and 70 years ago; for this raking up of old controversies extends that far back with reference to this great latter-day movement. I have it in mind to make a little contribution to this discussion, from the standpoint of this text. Of course, it is said that the tree must be judged by its fruit; and that must be admitted to be a righteous judgment, because in all moral machinery, the effectiveness of it must finally be judged by moral results, and we could not, if we would, escape the judgment of the world, which will be pronounced upon the results of our religious and ethical system. But, while that is a most excellent method of estimating the value of any religious or philosophical or ethical system, it does not exclude the justice and righteousness of judging it from this standpoint of James, namely: Is the fountain, whence it springs, pure? If so, it were an anomaly, indeed, if the streams flowing out of it were not like the fountain—pure. So, for a little while, I am going to invite your attention to the spirit in which this thing the world calls Mormonism had its inception. This gives us the opportunity of briefly reviewing some things that are very commonplace with you, but important, nevertheless; and we may begin with that very wonderful incident of the Prophet Joseph Smith's boyhood when but fourteen years of age. He went as you know to the Lord in prayer, in response to the Scripture which said: "If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not." He became familiar with that Scripture, for it constituted, at least on one occasion, a text to a discourse to which he listened, and it became the voice of God to his soul. At last he put this Scripture to the test and inquired of God, with the result familiar to you all that he received a splendid vision of God the Father and of the Son, and received knowledge of the purpose of the Father to give a new dispensation of the gospel to the world through him, provided he should be faithful. Three years passed, and when reviewing the experiences of those three years, and calling to mind, as any lad could, the follies of youth, the light-mindedness and the foolishness of boyhood, a sorrow took hold of him as he made this review; and he wondered to what extent he had given offense to God. He besought the Lord in prayer again, in order to know his standing, with the result that a holy messenger from the presence of God visited him and made known his acceptance to the Lord, notwithstanding his boyhood follies, and assured him that he was still the chosen instrument in the hands of God for the accomplishment of his purposes, and revealed to him the existence of a whole volume of Scripture, being the word of the Lord as delivered unto the prophets living upon these western American continents in ancient times. Of course, I am not relating these familiar incidents in the history of the Prophet, with a view of imparting information as to these facts to you, but I simply want to call your attention to the course pursued by the Prophet, to ask you if this course is not altogether commendable in him; and so far as we have pursued the course followed, is it not altogether praiseworthy—this seeking the Lord and finding him? This guidance by the spirit of prayer? This was the spirit in which Mormonism, so-called, had its inception, so far as the Prophet was concerned; and now I want to follow its development a little further.

By and by, others began to participate in the development of this work. Among those who sought to be useful in bringing it into existence was the Prophet's own father. He desired that his son inquire of the Lord to learn what course he should take, and what was to be his lot and part in this work. The Prophet inquired of the Lord and received the following message, contained in your Doctrine and Covenants:

"Behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men;

"Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day;

"Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God, ye are called to the work.

"For behold the field is white already to harvest, and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perish not, but bringeth salvation to his soul;

"And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.

"Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.

"Ask and ye shall receive, knock and it shall be opened unto you."

What virtue exists outside of those here enumerated and enjoined? What say you of this fountain—good, or corrupt?

By and by, but a few months after this, in fact, Oliver Cowdery came to the Prophet, he who was to be the Second Elder in the Church of Christ about to be established—a young man, a schoolteacher, a blacksmith, formerly a store-keeper—a variety of occupations of course impossible outside of frontier life in America, in the early decades of the nineteenth century. He had heard of God's dealings with this prophet who was being qualified for his great mission; and so came to him. He, too, like the Prophet's father, was willing to throw his lot in with the Prophet and the work that was developing. He, too, would know the will of the Lord concerning him, in his relationship to this work; and, now, what said the Lord to him? It is told in section six of your Doctrine and Covenants. It was given April, 1829, a year before the Church was organized; to Oliver the Lord said:

"A great and marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men."