Gospel Doctrine: Selections from the Sermons and Writings of Joseph F. Smith

by Joseph F. Smith

SERVICE OF JOSEPH SMITH. Our faith in Jesus Christ lies at the foundation of our religion, the foundation of our hope for remission of sins, and for exaltation after death, and for the resurrection from death to everlasting life. Our faith in the doctrines that have been restored through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith confirms and strengthens us and establishes beyond a question or doubt, our faith and belief in the divine mission of the Son of God. Joseph Smith was the instrument chosen of God and endowed with his authority to restore the holy priesthood, the power of God to bind on earth and in heaven,—the power of the priesthood by which men may perform ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ for the salvation of mankind. Through Joseph Smith the gospel of repentance, baptism in water for the remission of sins, the baptism of the Holy Ghost and by fire have been restored, and the knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, is made manifest through the spirit of truth. We are obligated to this humble servant that the Lord chose to lay the foundation of this work for the ordinances of the gospel of the Son of God, then and still unknown to the world, by which we may become united together as families, as kindreds, under the bonds of the new and everlasting covenant, for time and for all eternity. We are obligated to the Prophet Joseph Smith, as an instrument in the hand of the Lord, for the knowledge that we possess of the work which is necessary to be done in the house of God, for the salvation of the living and the redemption of the dead, and for the eternal union of souls who are united in this life by the power of God, under the bond of the everlasting covenant. We are indebted, or obligated at least, to the Prophet Joseph Smith, as the instrument in the hands of God, for the knowledge we now possess that a man cannot be exalted into the presence of God and the full enjoyment of his glory, alone. It was not designed for the man to be alone, for the man is not without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.—Oct. C. R., 1916, p. 3.

JOSEPH SMITH'S NAME WILL NEVER PERISH. God lives, and Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world. Joseph Smith is a prophet of God—living, not dead; for his name will never perish. The angel that visited him and declared God's message unto him, told him that his name should be held for good and for evil throughout the world. This prediction was made in the days of his youth, before the Church was organized, and before there was any prospect of that which has since been accomplished. The declaration was made, notwithstanding it then seemed an absolute impossibility; but from the day it was spoken until this moment, and from now on until the winding-up scene, the name of Joseph Smith, the prophet of the nineteenth century, has been, is being, and will be heralded abroad to the nations of the earth, and will be held in honor or contempt by the people of the world. But the honor in which it is now held by a few will by and by he increased that his name shall be held in reverence and honor among the children of men as universally as the name of the Son of God is held today; for he did and is doing the work of the Master. He laid the foundations in this dispensation for the restoration of the principles that were taught by the Son of God, who for these principles lived, and taught, and died, and rose from the dead. Therefore I say, as the name of the Son of God shall be held in reverence and honor, and in the faith and love of men, so will the name of Joseph Smith eventually be held among the children of men, gaining prestige, increasing in honor and commanding respect and reverence, until the world shall say that he was a servant and Prophet of God. The Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. Peace on earth, good will to men, is the proclamation that Joseph the Prophet made, and that is the same as his Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, made to the world. That is the mission we are trying to fulfil, and the proclamation we are seeking to make to the world today. It is the mission that these young men have been chosen to proclaim, and be witnesses of to the nations of the earth. It is their duty to see to it that this proclamation and this gospel of peace and good will shall be sent to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, under the whole heavens. God bless Israel, is my earnest prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.—Oct. C. R., 1907, pp. 125-126.

THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH. Brother Woodruff, in the course of his remarks, made the assertion that Joseph Smith was the greatest prophet that has ever lived, of whom we have any knowledge, save and except Jesus Christ himself. The world would say that he was an impostor; and the Lord said that his name should be had for good and for evil among all the nations of the earth; and this much, at least, so far as his name has become known, has been fulfilled. This prediction was made through the Prophet Joseph Smith himself, when he was an obscure youth, and when there was but little prospect of his name ever becoming known beyond the village where he lived. It was at an early period of his life, and at the beginning of the work that this prophecy or revelation was given, and it has been truly verified. Today there is not another man, perhaps, who has figured in religion, whose name is so wide-spread among the nations, as that of Joseph Smith. In connection with the work of which he was the instrument in the hands of God of laying the foundation, his name is spoken of in nearly every civilized nation upon the globe, for good or for evil. Where it is spoken of for good, it is by those who have had the privilege of hearing the gospel which has come to the earth through him, and who have been sufficiently honest and humble to receive the same. They speak of him with a knowledge which they have received by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, through obedience to the principles which he taught, as a prophet and as an inspired man. They speak to his praise, to his honor, and they hold his name in honorable remembrance. They revere him, and they love him, as they love no other man, because they know he was the chosen instrument in the hands of the Almighty in restoring the gospel of life and salvation unto them, of opening their understandings of the future, of lifting the veil of eternity, as it were, from before their eyes. Those who have received the principles which he promulgated know they pertain not only to their own salvation, happiness and peace, spiritual and temporal, but to the welfare, happiness, salvation and exaltation of their kindred who have died without a knowledge of the truth.

The work in which Joseph Smith was engaged was not confined to this life alone, but it pertains as well to the life to come, and to the life that has been. In other words, it relates to those who have lived upon the earth, to those who are living and to those who shall come after us. It is not something which relates to man only while he tabernacles in the flesh, but to the whole human family from eternity to eternity. Consequently, as I have said, Joseph Smith is held in reverence, his name is honored; tens of thousands of people thank God in their hearts, and from the depths of their souls, for the knowledge the Lord has restored to the earth through him, and therefore they speak well of him and bear testimony of his worth. And this is not confined to a village, nor to a state, nor to a nation, but extends to every nation, kindred, tongue and people where the gospel, up to the present, has been preached—in America, Great Britain, Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and upon the islands of the sea. And the Book of Mormon, which Joseph Smith was the instrument in the hands of God in bringing forth to this generation, has been translated into the German, French, Danish, Swedish, Welsh, Hawaiian, Hindustani, Spanish, and Dutch languages, and this book will be translated into other languages, for according to the predictions it contains, and according to the promises of the Lord through Joseph Smith it is to be sent unto every nation, and kindred, and people under the whole heavens, until all the sons and daughters of Adam shall have the privilege of hearing the gospel as it has been restored to the earth in the dispensation of the fulness of times.

The world presume that we have not received a knowledge of the truth. Those who are in ignorance in regard to the character, life, and labors of Joseph Smith, who have never read his revelations or studied or investigated his claims to divine authority, and are ignorant of his mission, revile him, sneer at his name, and ridicule his claims to prophetic inspiration, and called him an impostor in his day, except a few who hearkened to his instruction, and believed his testimony. The great majority of mankind then living who knew of Christ, deemed him an impostor, and considered him worthy to be put to death; precisely the same feeling existed towards Joseph Smith.

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Let us return to the Prophet Joseph Smith. He was accused of nearly everything that was vile, by his enemies, who, as is well known by the Latter-day Saints, were generally entirely ignorant of his true character and mission. What did Joseph Smith do? Was human blood found upon his hands? No, verily no. He was innocent. Was he a slanderer and vilified? No, verily, he was not. Did he wrongfully and unjustly accuse men of wickedness? No, he did not. Did he institute an order of things that has proved injurious to the human family? Let the people who have become acquainted with his doctrines, and with the institutions which he established upon the earth, and his own life's labor, answer.

He was born December 23, 1805, in the state of Vermont. His parents were American citizens, as had been their ancestors for generations. In the spring of 1820, he received the first supernatural or heavenly manifestation. He was then fourteen years of age. Ordinarily we do not expect a very great deal from a boy who is only fourteen years of age, and it is not likely that a boy of that tender age could have become very vicious or wicked, especially when he was born and reared on a farm, apart from the corrupting vices of great cities, and free from contact with the debasing influence of vile associations. It is not likely that he spent many idle moments during the working years of his life, up to fourteen years of age; for his father had to labor for his living and earn it from the soil by the labor of his hands, being a poor man with a large family to support.

In 1820, as I have said, Joseph Smith received a revelation in which he claimed that God had declared that he was about to restore the ancient gospel in its purity, and many other glorious things. In consequence of this, Joseph Smith became very notorious in the neighborhood where he resided, and people began to regard him with a great deal of suspicion. He was at once called an impostor, and a few years later he was styled by his enemies, "old Joe Smith." His fame became known throughout the United States. He was called a "money digger," and many other contemptuous things. If you will look at his history, and at the character of his parents, and surroundings, and consider the object of his life, you can discover how much consistency there was in the charges brought against him. All this was done to injure him. He was neither old nor a "money digger," nor an impostor, nor in any manner deserving of the epithets which they applied to him. He had never injured anybody, nor robbed anybody—he never did anything for which he could be punished by the laws under which he lived.

When he was between 17 and 18 years of age, he received another heavenly manifestation, and some great and glorious things were revealed to him, and for four years subsequently he received visits from a heavenly messenger. He did not claim he was in communication with wicked men or demons from the lower regions. He claimed he was in communication with Moroni, one of the ancient prophets who lived upon this continent. He was a good man when he lived here, and it is not likely that he had become wicked since he went away. This personage, he claimed, revealed to him the mind and will of the Lord, and showed him the character of the great work that he, in the hands of God was to be instrumental in establishing in the earth when the time should come. This was the labor that was performed by the angel Moroni, during the four years intervening between 1823 and 1827. In 1827 he received from the hands of the angel Moroni, the gold plates from which this book (Book of Mormon) was translated by him through the inspiration of the Almighty, and the gift and power of God unto him. I heard it read when I was a child. I have read it many times since, and I have asked myself, scores of times, have you ever discovered one precept, doctrine, or command, within the lids of that book, that is calculated to injure anybody, to do harm to the world, or that is in contradiction to the word of God as contained in the Bible? And the answer invariably came, No, not one solitary thing, every precept, doctrine, word of advice, prophecy, and indeed every word contained within the lids of that book, relating to the great plan of human redemption and salvation, are calculated to make bad men good and good men better.