THE POWER OF GOD AND THE POWER OF SATAN

A DISCOURSE BY ELDER JEDEDIAH M. GRANT, DELIVERED IN THETABERNACLE, GREAT SALT LAKE CITY, FEB. 19, 1854.

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I have been pleased with the remarks of Elder Hyde this afternoon. Imyself more or less familiar with the doings of the Spirit Rappers, havinghad an opportunity of becoming acquainted with them when I was last in NewYork and Philadelphia; and I am satisfied now, and was then, that they aremanifestations of spirits; and startling are the sentiments, developments,and doctrines they have made known. It has been treated a bubble upon thewave that soon would burst asunder; but I am satisfied the result of themanifestations of the spirits (wicked spirits) will be to combine theirforces in as systematic an order as they are capable of, to successfullyresist the Priesthood upon the earth.

I am aware that even some of the Latter-day Saints are slow to believein relation to the power of Lucifer, the son of the morning, who was thrustfrom the heavens to the earth; and they have been slow to believe in relationto the spirits that are associated with him; but from the first revelationsof the Almighty to brother Joseph Smith, not only revelations in relationto the deep things of the kingdom of God, and the high things of heaven,and the depths of hell, but revelations showing him the power of Lucifer,the opposite to good, that he might be aware of the strength of his opponent,and the opponent of the Almighty-I say, from perusing these revelations,I have always been specially impressed with the doctrine relating to thepower of Satan, as well as with the doctrines relating to the power of God.

I have always felt that no Saint fully comprehends the power of Satanas well as God's Prophet; and again I have thought that no Saint could fullyunderstand the power of God unless he learn the opposite. I am not myselfacquainted with any happiness that I have not learned the opposite of. Youmay perhaps enjoy a great deal, the opposite of which you know nothing of,you may be constituted different to me, your feelings may be different,you may have learned to enjoy without first experiencing the opposite; butI may say with safety, nearly all the blessings I enjoy and highly prizeare most appreciated after I have learned their opposite; and I am of opinionthat all Saints sooner or later will have to learn the opposite to good,they will have to partake of the bitter in order to properly appreciatethe sweet, they will have to be impressed with pain that they may appreciatepleasure.

In relation to spirits, for it seems to be the subject introduced to-day,I have this idea, that the Lord our God absolutely gave Lucifer a missionto this earth; I will call it a mission. You may think it strange that Ibelieve so good a being as our Father in heaven would actually send suchan odd missionary as Lucifer. You may call him a missionary, or any thingelse you please, but we learn he was thrust out of heaven, the place wherethe Lord dwells, to this earth; and his mission, and the mission of hisassociates who were thrust down with him, and of those whom he is successfulin turning away from God's children who have tabernacles, is to continueto oppose the Almighty, scatter His Church, wage war against His kingdom,and change as far as possible His government on the earth. He could takethe Saviour upon the pinnacle of the temple, and show him the kingdoms ofthis world, and could perform many wonderful works in the days of Jesus.When the Priesthood of God is upon the earth, then the priesthood of thedevil may be seen operating, for he has got one. When the kingdom of Godis on the earth, you may expect to see a special display or manifestationof the opposite to the Gospel of the kingdom, or of the Priesthood of God.

If you read the Book of Mormon, the Bible, and the Book of Doctrineand Covenants, you read about the power of Satan upon the earth-the manifestationof wicked spirits. When was this special power of Satan more particularlymade manifest? It has always been when the power of the holy Priesthoodand the kingdom of God were upon the earth. In the days of Moses, in thedays of the Patriarchs, in the days of the Prophets, and in the days ofJesus and his Apostles, and while his Church remained upon the earth, theopposite of the principles of heaven were specially made manifest, causinga lull in the public mind. The world is more or less controlled all thetime by influences that Lucifer evidently is not opposed to; he has littleobjection to the present organization of human society, from the fact thatevery thing passes along in the wake that agrees with his religion, andrather tends to forward his purposes.

Now some suppose if they can see a miracle, as they call it, that is,something beyond that which is ordinary with man, they are bound to believe;but I am of opinion that Lucifer and his associates can show as many miraclesas the people desire to see; they can show as many as were exhibited inEgypt in the days of king Pharaoh. I believe Lucifer has just as much powerto make lice now as ever he had, he has just as much ability to displayhis power in making a serpent to oppose a Moses as ever. Has he lost hispower during the last two, three, or four thousand years? We do not believehe has. If, then, he possesses the same power as he once did, why is henot able in this dispensation to make manifestations corresponding to thosein previous ones?

I wish to come down to our own day, for you know I am fond of rooting,grubbing, building, fencing, and doing the things needed right here at home.Let us then confine our remarks to this dispensation, when the Prophet JosephSmith was visited by an holy angel, clad in robes of light, who authorizedhim to sound the trump of the Gospel of peace, and receive the sacred recordsfrom the earth, and the Urim and Thummim, and who laid hands upon him andgave him the Holy Ghost, and authorized him to baptize for the remissionof sins, and organize the kingdom of God on the earth. What do we see atthis time? We see the manifestations of the power of Satan immediately afterthe revelations of the angel to Joseph. For instance, there were spiritmediums in Kirtland, when the Church was first organized there by brotherParley P. Pratt and others; but when Joseph went with the Priesthood, thedevil had to leave, for he had learned the power of Lucifer; and Josephorganized the Church, established the Priesthood, and set every thing right.

I might go on with a long routine of manifestations of the power ofGod, and of the power of the devil; but you who have come from the old country,and some of the first Elders that went over there-Presidents Young, Kimball,Hyde, and others, recollect manifestations of the spirits of the devil inthat land. They attacked those brethren by hundreds and by thousands, andthe spirits were actually visible. If you could call up brother WillardSnow, and converse with him, I have no doubt that he would tell you he wasattacked by them, and they overcame his body.

I am not surprised to see these manifestations increased upon the earth;but where is the anchor to the faith of the Saints? Where is the suretyof the Saints against these manifestations? Inasmuch as the world wouldnot listen to the Prophet Joseph, and receive the word of God through him,I look for the Lord to fulfil His word, and send them strong delusion, inasmuchas they believe not the truth, and will permit them now to believe a lie,that all who have pleasure in unrighteousness may be damned. I anticipateseeing strong delusion among the wicked in the day in which we live, butwhere is the anchor for the faith of the Saints? I will tell you where mineis.

When Joseph Smith was alive, his declaration to me was as the voiceof Almighty God. Why? Because he had the Priesthood of God on the earth;the Priesthood that is without father, without mother, without beginningof days or end of years, which is God's authority, the eternal power andright of the government of God upon the earth. I was subject to that governmentin the days of Joseph. Men used to talk on this wise -"But would youbelieve in the Prophet if he should demand all your property?" Luciferwould suggest this idea to them. "No," says another, "I wouldnot." "Suppose he should come to you, and tell you, you must sellyour farm in the east, and go to Kirtland, and consecrate your propertyto the Lord, would you do it?" "No," answers his neighbor,"the Lord has no use for my property, I would not do it." "Well,"says one, "do you think Joseph is right to dictate in temporal matters?"No." There were quite a majority, I believe, in the days of Joseph,who believed he had no right to dictate in temporal matters, in farms, houses,merchandize, [merchandise] gold, silver, &c.; and they were tried onvarious points.

When the family organization was revealed from heaven-the patriarchalorder of God, and Joseph began, on the right and on the left, to add tohis family, what a quaking there was in Israel. Says one brother to another,"Joseph says all covenants are done away, and none are binding butthe new covenants; now suppose Joseph should come and say he wanted yourwife, what would you say to that?" "I would tell him to go tohell." This was the spirit of many in the early days of this Church.

If you maintain the fact that the Priesthood of God is upon the earth,and God's representatives are upon the earth, the mouth-piece of Jehovah,the head of the kingdom of God upon earth, and the will of God is done uponearth as it is in heaven, it follows that the government of God is uponthe earth. I allude to the church which it dictates; and then to the wholeearth which it will dictate. Satan may succeed for a season to curtail theextent of this government, and the free working of its machinery, but ifthe Lord Almighty has organized a government upon the earth, and has committedthe Keys and Priesthood of it to His Prophet, that Prophet holds jurisdictionover the earth, the same as Adam did in the beginning. And righteous menin every dispensation since the creation, if they had any keys, had theKeys of the kingdom of God; and they extended over this wide world, whereverGod had a people and a government; and just as far as the Priesthood exercisedits authority, just so far the rule of the Almighty reached.

If Joseph had a right to dictate me in relation to salvation, in relationto a hereafter, he had a right to dictate me in relation to all my earthlyaffairs, in relation to the treasures of the earth, and in relation to theearth itself. He had a right to dictate in relation to the cities of theearth, to the natives of the earth, and in relation to everything on landand on sea. That is what he had a right to do, if he had any right at all.If he did not have that right, he did not have the Priesthood of God, hedid not have the endless Priesthood that emanates from an eternal being.A Priesthood that is clipped, and lacks length, is not the Priesthood ofGod; if it lacks depth, it is not the Priesthood of God; for the Priesthoodin ancient times extended over the wide world, and coped with the universe,and had a right to govern and control the inhabitants thereof, to regulatethem, give them laws, and execute those laws. That power looked like thePriesthood of God. This same Priesthood has been given to Joseph. Smith,and has been handed down to his successors.

I do not care how many devils rap, it is no trouble to me. I say, rapaway, and give as many revelations as you please, whether you are good spiritsor bad ones, it does not trouble my cranium. Rap away, for I trust in theanchor of my soul that is sure and steadfast, in the Priesthood of God uponthe earth.

What would a man of God say, who felt aright, when Joseph asked himfor his money? He would say, "Yes, and I wish I had more to help tobuild up the kingdom of God." Or if he came and said, "I wantyour wife?" "O yes," he would say, "here she is, thereare plenty more."

There is another main thread connected with this, that I have not broughtout. You know in fishing with the hook and line, if you draw out suddenlyon the line when you have got a large trout, you may break your line; youmust therefore angle a little, and manage your prize carefully. I wouldask you if Jehovah has not in all ages tried His people by the power ofLucifer and his associates; and on the other hand, has He not tried themand proved them by His Prophets? Did the Lord actually want Abraham to killIsaac? Did the Prophet Joseph want every man's wife he asked for? He didnot, but in that thing was the grand thread of the Priesthood developed.The grand object in view was to try the people of God, to see what was inthem. If such a man of God should come to me and say, "I want yourgold and silver, or your wives," I should say, "Here they are,I wish I had more to give you, take all I have got." A man who hasgot the Spirit of God, and the light of eternity in him, has no troubleabout such matters.

I am talking now of the present day. There was a time when we couldbe tried pretty severely upon these points, but I now could pick you outhundreds of men that cannot be tried in this way, but they will hand overevery thing they possess. They understand the nature of such doctrines,and the object of such requirements. They know it is to prove the people,both men and women, and to develop what they will do. How can the Priesthoodjudge the people, if it does not prove them.

If ever you are brought into the presence of God, and exalted to a seatin His celestial kingdom, it will be by virtue of the Holy Priesthood, thereforeyou have got to be proved, not only by being tempted by the devil, but thePriesthood will try you--it will try you to the core. If one thing won'ttry you, something else will be adopted, until you are like the passiveclay in the hands of the potter. If the Lord our God does not see fit tolet the devil loose upon you, and mob you, He will employ some other meansto try you as in a crucible, to prove you as gold is tried seven times inthe furnace.

The world philosophizes about the "Mormons," about their leaders,and the life they are living. There are a thousand conjectures among themin relation to the "Mormons." The grand secret is told in a fewwords; the fact is, the Almighty God has spoken from the heavens, sent heavenlymessengers, and organized His Church, restored the Holy Priesthood, establishedHis government on the earth, and exerted his power to extend it, and sendforth His word. And that Priesthood understands the principles and motivesby which men are actuated, and it understands the workings of the devilon the earth; that Priesthood knows how to govern, when to strike, and whennot to strike.

Some things in this Church start up at times, that you would think thewhole Church would be rent asunder, like the clans of Scotland. Clanism,and "Mormonism" are like that (putting his fingers across); "Mormonism"is one, it is governed by one head, one President, and that head representingGod on earth. If Joseph Smith held the keys of the kingdom of God on earth,of the Apostleship, does not his successor possess the same? Does he nothave a right to give laws, to instruct, to control and rule the people ofGod?

I might still go on, and explain to your understandings exactly whatI mean by rule. If this Priesthood is upon the earth, and you are controlledthereby, and listen to its counsels, you will be united as one people. Iknow the time was that many of this people believed that if a man was adoptedhere and there, one man would hold this way, and another that; but the factis, in the kingdom and Church of the Lord they are all in one pile. I donot care how many of you have been adopted here or there; that is the doctrineto me.

Let the devils rap, then, and let them talk, and mutter, and have theirmediums; what do I care, so long as the Priesthood is upon the earth, andthe Apostleship is upon the earth, and the government of God, and the lightand influence of the Holy Ghost, are upon the earth? Can they shake theSaints? No. But let a man lose the Spirit of God, and depart from this Church,and from the men that hold the Priesthood of God on the earth and I haveno doubt that Lucifer will reveal a great many truths to him, and teachand advocate principles and sentiments that will agree with doctrines ofthis Church. And they will even imitate Joseph Smith's hand writing, andthe hand writing of brother Hyrum, of Bishop Partridge, and of Bishop Whitney,and others; and they will give you flaming revelations, and the light theyemit will blaze like a comet.

Now Lucifer has philosophy enough and religion enough to suffer hisagents to run along with the truth hand in hand, and make himself appearlike an angel of light, and teach hundreds of true principles, if he canonly thereby get you to swallow one item of false doctrine. But the grandstory is, the devil may rage as long is he pleases, and use all the cunningand craft that he may, yet he never can overreach those who hold the keysof the Priesthood, nor succeed in deceiving them. This Joseph taught thepeople, but they were slow to believe. But now the energies of the peoplemove as one man; and if they want to build a Temple, they can build it,and whatever they want to accomplish they can do.

The Priesthood is a power we should respect, reverence, and obey, nomatter in whose hands it is. Let Lucifer mix in truths with error, and workgreat signs and wonders to deceive the very elect, but it is not possible.Why? Because they have learned the Priesthood, and they possess the powerthereof that cannot be shaken. Let the Rappers go ahead, then, for it isnot possible for them to deceive the elect of God; and let the witch ofEndor, and all other witches and wizards, with the prince and power of theair at their head, do their best, if we keep the commandments of God weshall continually soar far above their power and influence.

I want to have nothing to do with Satan, I desire not to shake handswith him, nor to do anything that will bring me in contact with him, forhe is powerful and if he once gets you in his grasp and shakes you, youwill think you are less than a grasshopper. Let us rally round the standardof God, and when we are in the circle of truth, then let the devil and theenemies of the Church of God fire the loudest guns, and wage their war,and marshal their strength, yet, armed with the armor of righteousness,clothed with the Priesthood and generalship of the Almighty, we shall successfullyresist, and triumphantly conquer Satan and all his allied forces of theearth and hell. They will then find out whether Joseph had a right to rulethis earth by the power of the Priesthood. They will then find out thatthe "Mormons," notwithstanding their curious bumps, for they havegot some curious bumps, are authorized to preach the Gospel of God, gatherIsrael, build up Zion, bind Lucifer with a chain, and establish the reignof peace on earth.

My prayer is that the Saints may understand that they are safe as longas they listen to the Priesthood authorized of heaven, are united in one,and not divided into clans, but become one great clan, under one head. Thenlet all the clanism of the world rally against us, and we are as firm asthe rock of ages, that supports the throne of Jehovah.

May God bless you with the truth as it is in Himself, and save you inHis kingdom, through Jesus Christ. Amen.