In section 127:8, the Lord again affirms: "For I am about to restore many things to the earth, pertaining to the Priesthood, saith the Lord of Hosts." Yes, He was about to do it, but nearly seventy years have passed away and the "Reorganization" confesses that they have not been revealed to them yet! Then they are not the Church! This is obvious.
Elijah said the time had fully come (Sec. 110) and the Prophet said "the earth will be smitten with a curse, unless there is a welding link of some kind or other, between the fathers and the children * * * it is necessary in the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulnesss of times * * that a whole and complete and perfect union, and welding together of dispensations, and keys, and powers, and glories should take place and be revealed from the days of Adam even to the present time; and not only this, but those things which never have been revealed from the foundation of the world, but have been kept hid from the wise and prudent, shall be revealed unto babes and sucklings in this the dispensation of the fulnesss of times." (Sec. 128:18).
Here is a point of considerable interest that our friends have overlooked. The Lord says: "And I will show unto my servant Joseph ALL THINGS pertaining to this house, and the Priesthood thereof; and the place whereon it shall be built. (Sec. 124:42). Evidently the Lord was going to show him these things before the Temple was built. Did the Lord keep His word? Our Reorganite friends say not, that these things were not revealed. But they were revealed to Joseph Smith and he revealed them to others; not the unfaithful who would receive only the "lesser portion of the word" and were therefore denied the greater things, but he taught them to the Apostles and others. Now, the Lord did not say that Joseph Smith could not receive the fulnesss of the Priesthood out side of the Temple, neither that he should not confer the same Priesthood upon others, to the contrary the Lord said He would reveal these things to Joseph Smith, but it was His people, His Church that could not receive them outside of the Temple of the Lord! and unto them He was going to reveal them in the Temple, but unto Joseph Smith He would show all things pertaining to His house, and the Priesthood thereof.
It is unnecessary here to quote the evidence proving that Joseph Smith received all things pertaining to the Priesthood of the Lord's house and conferred them on the heads of the Apostles, for that is given in another place, and has often been recorded. It is, therefore, sufficient to say that shortly before his death he conferred upon the heads of the Apostles all the keys and Priesthood the Lord had given him, and this was done by command of the Lord. We will merely refer to the testimony of Orson Hyde which with other testimonies is given in this book. Said Brother Hyde:
"Before I went east on the 4th of April last, we were in council with Brother Joseph almost every day for weeks, said Brother Joseph in one of those councils, 'There is something going to happen; I don't know what it is, but the Lord bids me to hasten and give you your endowment before the Temple is finished.' He conducted us through every ordinance of the Holy Priesthood, and when he had gone through with all the ordinances, he rejoiced very much, and said, 'Now, if they kill me, you have got all the keys, and all the ordinances, and you can confer them upon others, and the hosts of Satan will not be able to tear down the kingdom, as fast as you will be able to build it up.'" (Times and Seasons, 5:651).
"Have any such revelations been received? they cry. Name them. Where are they and what are they?" Yes, these revelations have been received. They were revealed to Joseph Smith[4] and from him to the Apostles, and by the Apostles they have been given to the faithful Saints in the Temples of the Lord; both at Nauvoo and here in Utah. "Name them?" No, I shall not name them nor tell what they are. Why? because if the Lord kept some things hid from the world since before the foundation of the world, pertaining to the dispensation of the fulnesss of times, and has revealed them now unto His Church, I have no authority to reveal them to the world. Moreover, I am—like every other member of the Church—"laid under a strict command, not to impart only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men." Should I reveal these things, because of the hardness of your hearts you would not receive them, therefore, you shall receive but the lesser portion of the word, to your condemnation. If you will not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will you though one arose from the dead.
REVELATION.
Another charge is that the Presidents of the Church have not received the revelations of the Lord which have been given to the "Reorganization" through their president. The charge is false. The Presidents of the Church from the Prophet Joseph until now have received revelations from the Lord for the guidance of His people. While all these revelations have not been placed in the Doctrine and Covenants, they are none the less true. Not all the revelations given to Joseph the Seer were placed in the Doctrine and Covenants in his day, we have added many of his revelations to that volume since his death; and there are others that have not been placed in it. Some of them were for the Church and not for the world, and, therefore, are given only to the Saints. But many revelations have been given to the Church since the death of Joseph Smith, some of these have been published, some have not. It has been my privilege to read and handle a number of them that are still in the manuscript and have not as yet been given to the world for a wise purpose in the Lord. But they are on file and will be preserved.
A short time ago a number of Elders visited Lamoni and held meetings there. The following issue of the Saints' Herald contained an editorial, not very dignified, ridiculing them. It was written by the associate editor. In part he said:
"It may be urged that these are young and inexperienced men. But the dearth of spiritual power is not confined to these young men. Joseph F. Smith, who is supposed to be a 'Prophet, seer, and revelator,' when before the Senate Committee was asked by Senator Dubois, 'Have you received any individual revelations yourself, since you became president of the Church under your own definition, even, of a revelation?'
"To this he replied, 'I cannot say that I have.'
"A moment later he added, 'Well, I can say this: That if I live as I should in the line of my duties, I am susceptible, I think, of the impressions of the Spirit of the Lord upon my mind at any time, just as any good Methodist or any other church member might be.'
"This seems to be in line with the experiences of his predecessors, Snow, Woodruff, Taylor, and Young, who also posed as 'revelators,' for during a period of over sixty years they have received nothing professing to be a revelation, that was thought worthy of a place in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants." (Elbert A. Smith, Saints' Herald, 56:681).