[Apostle John Henry Smith Diary] Liverpool
I received a letter from my wife Josephine written Nov. 5. All were pretty well at that time. I also received a letter from my son George Albert with a gem picture. I received a copy of the following revelation.
Revelation given through President John Taylor,
at Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, Oct. 13th 1882.
Thus saith the Lord to the Twelve, and to the priesthood and people of my church: Let my servants George Teasdale and Heber J. Grant be appointed to fill the vacancies in the Twelve, that you may be fully organized and prepared for the Labors devolving upon you, for you have a great work to perform, and then proceed to fill up the presiding quorum of Seventies, and assist in organizing that body of my priesthood who are your co-laborers in the ministry. You may appoint Seymour B. Young to fill up 'the vacancy in the presiding quorum of seventies, if he will conform to my law; for it is not meet that men who will not abide by law shall preside over my priesthood; and then proceed forthwith and call to your aid any assistance that you may recquire from among the seventies to assist you in your labors in introducing and maintaining the gospel among the Lamanites throughout the land. And then let High Priests be selected, under the direction of the first Presidency, to preside
over the various organizations that shall exist among this people; that those who receive the Gospel may be taught in the doctrines of my church, and in the ordinances and law thereof; and also in the things pertaining to my Zion and my Kingdom, saith the Lord, that they may be one with you in my church and my Kingdom.
Let the Presidency of my church be one in all things; and let the Twelve also be one in all things; and let them all be one with me as I am one with the Father.
And let the High Priests organize themselves and purify themselves, and prepare themselves for this labor, and for all other labors that they may be called upon to fulfil.
And let the Presidents of Stakes also purify themselves, and the priesthood and people of the Stakes over which they preside, and organize the priesthood in their various Stakes according to my law in all the various departments thereof, in the High Councils, in the Elders quorums, and in the Bishops and their councils, and in the quorum of Priests, Teachers and Deacons, that every quorum may be fully organized according to the order of my church; and then let them inquire into the standing and fellowship of all that hold my holy priesthood in their several stakes; and if they find those that are unworthy let them remove them, except they repent; for my priesthood, whom I have called and whom I have sustained and honored, shall honor me and obey my laws, and the laws of my holy priesthood or they shall not be considered worthy to hold my priesthood, saith the Lord. And let my priesthood humble themselves before me, and seek not their own will but my will; for if my priesthood,
whom I have chosen, and called, and endowed with the spirit and gifts of their several callings, and with the powers thereof do not acknowledge me I will not acknowledge them, saith the Lord, for I will be honored and obeyed by my priesthood.
And, then, I call upon my priesthood, and upon all my people, to repent of all their sins and shortcomings, of their covetousness and pride and selfwill, and of all their iniquities wherein they sin against me; and to seek with all humility to fulfil my law, as my priesthood, my saints, and my people, and I call upon the heads of families to put their houses in order according to the law of God, and attend to the various duties and responsibilities associated therewith, and to purify themselves before me, and to purge out iniquity from their households.
And I will bless and be with you, Saith the Lord, and ye shall gather together in your holy places wherein ye assemble to call upon me, and ye shall ask for such things as are right, and I will hear your prayers, and my spirit and power shall be with you, and my blessing shall rest upon you, upon your families, your dwellings, and your households, upon your flocks and herds and fields, your orchards and vineyards, and upon all that pertain to you, and you shall be my people and I will be your God and your enemies shall not have dominion over you, for I will preserve you and confound them, saith the Lord, and they shall not have power nor dominion over you; for my word shall go forth, and my work shall be accomplished; and my Zion shall be established, and my rule and my power and my dominion shall prevail among my people, and all nations shall yet acknowledge me, Even So amen.
[Source: Jean Bickmore White (editor), Church, State, and Politics: The Diaries of John Henry Smith, Signature Books in association with Smith Research Associates, Salt Lake City, 1990, http://bit.ly/johnhenrysmith]
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