Christ is the light of the world (Brigham Young)

Christ is the light of the world and lighteth every man that cometh into it. No human being has ever been born upon this earth without more or less enlightenment by that Spirit and influence that flows from the Fountain of intelligence. All people have been more or less taught by the Spirit of revelation; and let me say further, there never was a child born upon this earth that was not naturally endowed with that Spirit; and when we try to make ourselves believe differently, we are mistaken.

It is extensively taught that nature must be subdued, and grace made to take its place. I wish to inform you that it is nature for the child to be influenced by the Spirit of God. It is nature for all people to be influenced by a good spirit; and the evil that is spoken of is the power the Devil has gained upon this earth through the fall. He gained power to tempt the children of men, and wickedness is produced through their yielding to his temptations; but it is not nature in them. They are not “conceived in sin and brought forth in iniquity,” pertaining to their spirits. It is the flesh that is alluded to in that passage. Then why not follow the dictates of the good Spirit? We talk about it, read of it, believe in it—that Spirit which gives joy and peace to the children of men, and wishes and does no evil to any person; and that is the Spirit of the Gospel.

If people would listen to the whisperings of that Spirit, they would be led into the paths, of truth and righteousness. If they would overcome temptations to evil—cause their spirits to overcome the flesh, they would bring themselves into subjection to the law of Christ and become Saints of God.

You design evils in your neighbourhoods, in your families, and in yourselves. The disposition to produce evil, to annoy, to disturb the peace of families, neighbours, and society, is produced by the power of the enemy over the flesh, through the fall. Every person who will examine his own experience—who will watch closely the leading of his own desires,—will learn that the very great majority prefer to do good rather than to do evil, and would pursue a correct course, were it not for the evil power that subjects them to its sway. In wrong doing, their own consciences condemn them. They are taught what is right, they read what is right, and at times the Spirit of the Lord is upon them, teaching them what is right, and would be upon them from their youth, were it not that they give way to temptation and let the flesh overcome the spirits that God has placed within us. I feel to continually urge upon those who profess to be Saints never to grieve that Spirit that enlightens their minds, teaches them righteousness, to love God and their fellow-creatures, and to do good to themselves and to all around them, to promote righteousness upon the earth, and overcome iniquity in themselves and those around them as fast as possible.

Brigham Young

6:330-31

we will receive what we have earned (Heber C. Kimball)

What are my feelings continually? They are—I would to God this people would all do right and walk humbly before their God, and do unto one another as they would wish others to do unto them, and when men labour for each other, labour for their brother as they would wish him to labour for them. But I see men who come to labour for the Lord, who are eye-servants. A man who will be an eye-servant to his God will be to his brother; and that man who will be an eye-servant to his brother will be to his God, and he never will work only as you stand and watch him. I see men work on the public works—one hundred, or perhaps one hundred and fifty in a gang, and I have watched them work, and not over twenty men out of the one hundred and fifty will be at work at the same time, while the rest are standing still. I supposed they had agreed to work by turns, so that they would not become wearied before night. Is this doing as you would be done by? I know, gentlemen and ladies, that it is not; and those who do such things will be brought to an account for them, and for all the works of your lives, whether they be good or whether they be evil, whether they be much or whether they be little. You will not receive a reward for anything more than you merit; and whatever you have done, for it you merit a reward, and that belongs to you; but no men or women in the celestial world will be rewarded for that which they have not done.

Heber C. Kimball

6:324

do right and all will be well (Heber C. Kimball)

Take a righteous course, brethren, and build up the kingdom of God, and all will be well with you continually, and all things will work together for your good. I have not language to explain things any plainer than I do. They are plain enough to me; and if you understand them as I do, they will do you good, and build you up, and nourish you, and strengthen you, and give you grace and patience and humility.

Heber C. Kimball

6:325

vision on the night Joseph Smith obtained the gold plates (Heber C. Kimball)

The night the plates were given to Joseph Smith from their bed in the summit of the hill Cumorah, I saw, in the firmament above my head, hosts of men in platoons of twelve; and I saw them march until they reached the western horizon, as far as I could see them. After looking upon them for hours with my natural eyes, I never observed a variation of a heir’s breadth in their step, or the least disorder or confusion in their ranks…

Heber C. Kimball

6:326

[Brigham Young and others saw this same vision]

the importance of learning while young (Orson Hyde)

Think not, my young friends, that you can spend the prime and vigour of your days in the vanities and pleasures of life, and in your more advanced years store your minds with wisdom and knowledge; but let your youthful energies now be devoted to the acquisition of literary and scientific knowledge, that when you arrive to manly strength, dignity, and wisdom, you may call into immediate requisition the fruits of your youthful labours and toil.

Orson Hyde

6:373

the office of the Spirit (Orson Pratt)

The office of the Spirit, when given in ancient times, was to make manifest truth—to quicken the memory of the man of God, that he might communicate clearly things which he had once learned, but partially forgotten.  For instance, the Apostles heard, during three years and a half, many sermons and a vast amount of conversation and private teaching. The office of the Spirit of truth was to bring to their remembrance the things that Jesus had formerly taught them. So it is the office of the same Spirit in these days to bring to our remembrance the words of the ancient Prophets and Apostles, and the words of Jesus, inasmuch as we have faith and confidence in God.

Orson Pratt

6:349-50

the foolishness of men (Heber C. Kimball)

I have learned one thing to a demonstration since I became a member of this Church, that if a man is determined to be damned, nothing can hinder it. I have argued with men for hours, for weeks, for months, and for years, to prevail on them to serve the Lord; but my labours have generally been spent in vain on persons who needed so much persuasion to do good. The Spirit of the Lord does not inspire me to trouble myself any more about men who will do wrong. It is enough for me to do the will of the Lord my God, even those things I am dictated to do by my President; and let every other man act as I do, and be perfectly independent whether to serve God or Mammon. I would not now step one step out of my way to head a man’s course that is determined to go to the Devil; but I will say, Go into the fire, that you may be burned out. He will be saved when he comes to himself; but he never will come to himself, until he is burned out like an old pipe that has become impregnated with filthiness.

Heber C. Kimball

6:323

God is in control (Orson Hyde)

It is all working just right. Our enemies, whether white or red, can only go so far; none can get beyond the control of the Almighty. They may take the wings of the morning and fly to the uttermost parts of the earth, and he is there; or if they make their bed in hell, behold he is there. They cannot get from under his jurisdiction, unless they go beyond the bounds of time and space. All things are confined in space, and are under the jurisdiction and control of the Almighty; and if he cannot find them in one place, he will in another.

Orson Hyde

6:337-38

the justice and mercy of God (Brigham Young)

So far as morality is concerned, millions of the inhabitants of the earth live according to the best light they have—according to the best knowledge they possess. I have told you frequently that they will receive according to their works; and all who live according to the best principles in their possession, or that they can understand, will receive peace, glory, comfort, joy, and a crown that will be far beyond what they are anticipating. They will not be lost.

Brigham Young

6:332

moral lives; Spirit of truth

In the Christian world, thousands and millions of them are as close to the truth as any man that ever lived upon the face of the earth, so far as moral, Christian deportment is concerned. I can find a great many of this community who live as moral lives as men and women can. Is there anything else necessary and important? Yes—to so live as to have the light of the Spirit of truth abiding within you day by day, that when you hear the truth, you know it as well as you know the faces of your father’s family, and also understand every manifestation produced by erroneous principles.

Brigham Young

6:331