John Taylor

“ But war against evil, corruption and iniquity of every kind, wherever found; stand firm in upholding and maintaining the principles of truth as they have been revealed to us, before high heaven, before all men. We want to be united, and, as Paul says, "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world against, spiritual wickedness in high places. ”

“ I would curse God and die like a man. Job replied, "You talk like one of the foolish women of old. Have we not received good at the hands of the Lord, and shall we not also receive evil? The Lord gave, and the Lord taketh away, and blessed be the name of the Lord." ”

“ We are not here to follow the devices and desires of our own hearts; we are not here to carry out any particular theory of our own; we are not here to build up any system of man's creation; but we are here simply to do the will of God in the establishment of his kingdom on the earth. In many things however we have not lived up to that high and glorious privilege which has been presented to us; we have been careless and indifferent, and it seems as though Satan has been permitted to try and tempt us in every possible way. ”

“ We want to be united in our hearts and feelings: united to each other; united to the holy priesthood, bound together by those indissoluble ties that will unite us in time and through eternity, according to the principles of the everlasting covenant which we have entered into which reaches beyond the vail. ”

“ Will we protect such people? Yes, all honorable men. When the people shall have torn to shreds the Constitution of the United States the Elders of Israel will be found holding it up to the nations of the earth and proclaiming liberty and equal rights to all men, and extending the hand of fellowship to the oppressed of all nations. This is part of the programme, and as long as we do what is right and fear God, he will help us and stand by us under all circumstances.
Therefore, Latter-day Saints, fear God; work the works of righteousness; live your religion ”

“ Thousands of our Elders have preached among the nations to the effect that God was having a controversy with them; that he would arise and shake terribly the earth and vex the nations sorely. Many of you Elders before me to-day have proclaimed these things; and you have told the people that empires would be cast down and the kingdoms overthrown and the nations wasted away, but that the work and purposes of God would grow and increase until the kingdoms of this world should become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ. ”

“ We have got this kingdom to build up; and it is not a phantom, but a reality. We have to do it, God expects it at our hands. We have got to have—now do not tell any body for it is a great secret; we have got to have political power. ”

“ Perhaps so, but no matter; we have got to go on and progress in these things. We have got to establish a government upon the principle of righteousness, justice, truth and equality and not according to the many false notions that exist among men. And then the day is not far distant when this nation will be shaken from centre to circumference. ”

“ As we adhere to the principles of law, equality, justice and right, and are governed by those principles. The man who is governed by the Spirit of God and lives in the light of revelation, has the law of God written on his heart and it is engraven in his inward parts. He feels as Jesus did about these things. ”

“ We want to act according to correct principle, and be governed by the law of God, not one law for one man and another for another man. But operating together and maintaining one another's rights upon the pure principles of truth and equity, as they exist in the bosom of God. When the things spoken of referring to the last days shall transpire, righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins, and it will be as was remarked by Brother Richards, and as the Prophet Jeremiah foretold: "I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts ”

“ One was a covetous man, a wicked man who did not fear God; the other was a righteous man who feared God. The wicked son, who was instigated of the devil, said, I will kill my brother and then I will have his possessions. He did so and it seems that this kind of feeling existed until in a short time that influence had so prevailed that wickedness and corruption made such rapid strides that the world had to be swept as with a besom of destruction, and only a very few men were left. ”

“ You have heard that prophesied over and over again, and I will prophesy it again to-day. And every power that lift its hand against the kingdom of God will be wasted away: for God will have a controversy with the nations who oppose his work, and he will manage them in his own way; he will put a hook in their jaws and will lead them whithersoever he will. The wrath of man shall praise him, and the remainder he has said he will restrain. ”

“ We have got something else to do besides folding our arms and crying "Lullaby baby on the tree top, when the wind blows the cradle will rock." We have something to do besides "sitting and singing ourselves away to everlasting bliss." ”

“ This is exactly as it has been foretold many thousands of years ago, and you brethren are perfectly familiar with it from having preached it both to the world and to the Latter-day Saints. When this little stone, then, as it rolls forth, strikes the toes of the great image, are you surprised that there should be a little kicking? You don't like to have your toes trodden upon any more than anybody else. ”

“ Those who will not take up their sword to fight against their neighbor must needs flee to Zion for safety. And they will come, saying, we do not know anything of the principles of your religion, but we perceive that you are an honest community; you administer justice and righteousness, and we want to live with you and receive the protection of your laws, but as for your religion we will talk about that some other time. ”

“ We have gathered in "one of a city and two of a family;" we have combated the errors of ages and inveighed against the wickedness, corruptions and strategems of wicked and ungodly men, who have opposed us on every hand; and we have, with the help of the Lord, succeeded in gathering out many of the honest in heart from among the different nations of the earth. ”

“ We are an integral part of this great government of the United States not a very large part, but a very small part; and we have assumed a species of political importance; and every now and then they get after us without knowing hardly the why or the wherefore. ”

“ We may struggle as we please and do as we please in regard to these things, but we are all in the hands of God. As has been remarked, it is quite easy for the Lord to handle us in these mountains. He can send grass-hoppers if he wants to; he can withhold the snows from coming on our mountains if he wants to, and thus cause drouth in the summer season and he can send the moths to destroy our fruit; all of which we have more or less already experienced. In fact he can do with us just as he pleases and we cannot help ourselves. ”

“ They talk sometimes quite loudly about our corruptions. Why, as I told them some time ago in Salt Lake City, in talking about this matter, there is more wickedness carried on in Washington, where they talk so much about purity, in one day, than there is in these valleys of the mountains in six months, the Gentiles and all thrown in. And yet it is quite important that they should call upon a number of European nations to help them to correct the morals of two hundred thousand people in these far distant mountains. ”

“ But if we are trembly and shaky, our religion is not worth much to us. We have a few among us who say, "Oh, don't! you'd better take it easy! Keep quiet! You may offend the devil, for what I know. We have a few dollars somewhere, and we are afraid something will disturb them, and the property we have made will go!" ”

“ It seems that the devil appeared among the sons of God in heaven, as he does on earth very frequently. When the sons of God were assembled together, the devil was among them, and he went, as it appears, to instigate a feeling against Job. ”

“ It is in consonance with the fore-ordained plan of the Almighty that a man should pass through certain trials and difficulties, and be tested in every possible way, in order to be prepared for an exaltation in the kingdom of God. ”