Orson Hyde

“ The inspired Apostles and Prophets, together with the martyrs of Jesus, and all the pure and sanctified ones, will inherit a glory like the sun; while the hypocritical professor, the liar, the adulterer, the profane swearer, with all who hold to a religion without Prophets and Apostles, without inspiration and miracles, without revelation, prophecy, keys, and powers to bind on earth and in heaven, after the call is made upon them by the messengers of the true religion, will be damned and sent away into outer darkness, even into prison, where they will gnaw their tongues for pain. ”

“ There is no professing Christian in the world, who does not possess the spirit of prophecy, that can tell whether he is wheat, straw, chaff, smut, or tares. And no person can have the spirit of prophecy who declares that the days of the prophets are gone by and are not needed now, unless that spirit should be given to seal condemnation upon the narrow-minded bigot who will not confess it and give God the glory, after it may have fallen upon him; for he loves the praise of men more than the praise of God. ”

“ It sometimes happens that a scholar at school, anxious to advance, takes a lesson to-day in one branch of science, and to-morrow in another, and the third day in another, and so on, until, in his own estimation, he comes out a polished and refined student, a professor and a sage,—when, in fact, he understands nothing that he has read, and is only cherishing a deception that he has practised upon himself. ”

“ And inasmuch as our Heavenly Father is accessable to all, it is far better to store our minds with the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, by our own spiritual labours and toil, direct from the great Fountain of celestial light and love, than to trust wholly to the testimony and teachings of others. Obtain the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy. ”

“ If, therefore, an overruling Providence has mercifully laid an embargo upon our temporal pursuits by the pitiless storms of a long and dreary winter, and poured out His Holy Spirit upon us to awaken us to reformation, we have double reason to acknowledge His hand and to praise Him for ever for the good and benevolent designs He has manifested towards us. ”

“ So every creature, beast and bird, man and woman, has a spirit peculiar to its own organization; and no organization is entirely, independent of the Spirit of God; for all have some intelligence. Were the spirits and temperaments all alike, the same instructions would serve for all. But as it is, every man must receive his portion of meat in due season. And the word must be rightly divided —giving to every man his portion that is adapted to his organization and temperament, that he may thereby be saved.
Man is composed of matter and spirit ”

“ Therefore, let us ever act upon true and righteous principles, and they will remain with us, and we shall become righteous in our natures; and if we never act upon an evil principle, we shall forget all the evil we ever knew, and God will forget it also; and our natures will never be evil inclined.
If we have reduced to practice all the teachings and instructions given us from this stand and from other places, we are a blessed and happy people. If we have not, we have not done justice to ourselves. ”

“ If we have practised upon the lessons and teachings we have received, we know that they will stand by us; but if we have merely heard them, and not entered into the practical duties thereof, they will die in our memory, never having been incorporated in our organization, and we become like the man beholding his natural face in the glass, and straightway goeth away and forgetteth what manner of man he is. ”

“ We have had a good season during the past winter, and a precious opportunity to improve our minds and to gain knowledge and information preparatory to our assuming those responsibilities, and to act that part in the great drama of God's eternal kingdom, which our profession, office, and calling imperatively demand at our hand. ”

“ Have we thoroughly learned the lessons that have been given us, and reduced them to practice? There is nothing better calculated to imprint upon the mind any science or theory than to reduce it to practice and really act upon it. ”

“ Others are of low temper, because of a low, dull, and sluggish disposition and character, which they have indulged, and consequently formed. They are not a very smooth or sweet cutting tool. They have not sought to cultivate their temperament by seeking and courting the Spirit of God as they should. ”

“ The sun, moon, and stars are the representatives of the final homes of the departed dead, if not their real homes. The sun is said to shine by its own light inherent in itself. I might not admit this under some circumstances ”

“ To the faithful Saints, it matters not whether the seasons are mild and pacific, or boisterous and severe. If we do right, we shall all have abundant reason to say," True and righteous are Thy ways, Thou King of Saints." ”

“ They will ask you a thousand and one questions in order to draw out something to satisfy their eager desire for knowledge and understanding, not hardly recollecting their privilege to ask of God and receive for themselves. ”

“ It is now the time of seeding. Our farmers are sowing at the north and in the south—a matter of great satisfaction to me. And here allow me to express a wish, that while they sow in faith, they may reap with joy! ”

“ Or have you indulged a wish to get some new thing—something far-fetched, which can have no effect other than to allure your minds from the truths that worthily demand your sincere attention and observance? ”

“ If we learn righteous principles and practise them, they have power to change our natures in conformity with themselves. They become a part and parcel of ourselves, bringing us into an alliance with them that knows no separation. Hence we become a righteous people ”

“ The chaff, straw, &c., produced in that field draw their nourishment from the very same source that the berry does from the moisture and fatness of the soil! They all feed upon the very same food! Not only so, but we perceive that, by ligaments and fibres, the chaff, the straw, and the berry are all connected together; and in view of a similar principle, our Saviour said, "Root not up the tares until the time of harvest, lest, by rooting up the tares, ye root up the wheat also." ”

“ Still, one can hardly refrain from thinking, when he sees his neighbour begging and borrowing bread, how much more commendable it would be in him to apply himself to labour and produce thereby bread from the soil by his own exertion. ”

“ Still, we cannot look upon them as being tempered by the Holy Spirit to the extent of their privilege. Yet they work righteousness as far as they work at all. These persons are fond of going to meeting, and are often heard to say, "What a good sermon we have had!" ”

“ But if the season had been open and mild, as it sometimes is in this country, we might, perhaps, through a great desire to accumulate comforts around us, have been led away by our worldly interests to the great neglect of the "one thing needful." ”

“ In this prison they must remain until they have paid the utmost farthing. The antediluvians were in this prison for a long time, until at length Christ preached the Gospel to their spirits, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh. ”

“ They keep within the pale of the law, pay their tithing, and keep along, and are considered good, peaceable, and honourable citizens. They despise to steal, are willing to labour, and pursue an even, straightforward course. ”