Latter Day Saints' Messenger and Advocate/Volume 1/Number 3/FAITH OF THE CHURCH. NO. IX.
FAITH OF THE CHURCH. NO. IX. edit
So plain and easy of understanding are these teachings of the Savior, that none need mistake them: if there is darkness in our minds, it is owing to our prejudices, and not to any obscurity in the teachings of the Savior. Neither would we expect to find a subject of such vital importance, left in any degree doubtful: indeed all the darkness there is on the subject of the work of the Holy Spirit, in the salvation of men, is owing to carnal and sensual men, who have not the Spirit: taking on themselves the office of teaching the things of God: and being destitute of the Spirit, they are incapable of teaching the truth, to others: and instead of enlightening the minds of men, they "darken council with words without knowledge," and lead the unwary astray, and blind the eyes of the people, so that they are incapable of discerning truth from error.
We have seen in the foregoing quotations, in the clearest possible light, the way and manner in which the Savior of the world, prepared his servants and messengers to teach the world of mankind, and how he qualified them, so that they might teach truth, and not error. But to remove all doubt on this subject from every mind, so as not to have even ground for a caviler, we will take a view of the whole course of the divine proceedings with his messengers, whom he sent into the world to teach it righteousness.—We will go back and examine the manner of his dealing with them, in order to qualify them for the work whereunto he had called them.
We all know that the first thing to be done, was to call them, as he did. See Matthew 4th chapter, from the 17 to the 23. Also, Mark, 1 chapter, from the 15, to the 21.—After he called them, he next ordained them. See Mark 3 chapter, from the 12 to the 20 verse. 1 Timothy, 3 chapter 7 verse, Paul says of himself that he was ordained a preacher and an apostle. In the 14 verse of the 3 chapter of Mark, we are told, that he ordained twelve to be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach to all nations.—As it is particularly said, that these twelve whom he sent forth were in the first place to be with him, we will have a fair opportunity of seeing the manner and way by which he qualified them to go forth, and preach to all nations, whither he would, in due time, send them, and whither he did send them after his resurrection from the dead. We have just seen that he first called them, then ordained them; and from that time, till the time of his crucifixion, he kept them with him, teaching them, and instructing them, into the knowledge of the kingdom of heaven. When he taught by parables, he explained all things to them privately. In the 10 chapter of Matthew, we have an account of his sending them out to preach, and to heal all manner of diseases; to cast out devils, and to raise the dead; preaching as they went, that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. And he continued teaching and instructing them, into the knowledge of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God, and expounding all things to them which were written, in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning himself until his death, and for some time after his resurrection. See Luke 24 chapter, from the 43, to the 48 verse. "And he said unto them, these are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. And said unto them. Thus it is written, and thus it beho[o]ved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
What a vast of labor, and pains, he must have bestowed upon them, during his stay in the flesh: and then again after his resurrection from the dead, opening their understanding that they might understand the scriptures: and then making known unto them the things pertaining to himself, and to his kingdom, by similitudes, parables, figures, allegories and comparisons! teaching, and instructing them, into all knowledge and understanding, of those things which pertain to eternal life, until the close of his ministry, in this life: he then in his prayer to his Father, as recorded in the 17 chapter of John's gospel, or testimony, informs his Father what he had done for them. He says thus: "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.—Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee: For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me: and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. See 6, 7 and 8 verses. As I presume that there are no persons, who believe in the divine mission of Jesus Christ, who will be disposed to doubt the truth of what he said on this occasion to his Father, respecting his disciples, it is only necessary for those who believe in the divine authenticity of the new testament, to read the above quotation once, (for it is exceedingly plain,) in order to see the great advantages these messengers had previous to the death of the Savior: First, they had the name of God manifested to them: I have manifested thy name to the men which thou gavest me out of the world. Secondly, they knew that all things whatsoever the Savior had, were of God.
Thirdly, they had both received and kept the words which were given unto them of the Father, through the Savior. Fourth, they knew that he had come out from God, and that God had most assuredly sent him into the world. According to the testimony of the Savior on all the foregoing points, they had the greatest confidence, and the strongest assurance: having seen, heard, and known, for themselves, until they knew most assuredly. There were the best of reasons for the Savior's saying as he did to his Father on that occasion: for on the mount of transfiguration, he had let them behold his glory, and they heard the voice of God out of the heavens, speaking unto them, and testifying that Jesus was the Son of God. So that the apostles did know beyond the power of contradiction, that he had come out from God: on this most important of all points, their minds must have been without doubt. In addition to this, they had, previous to the time when the Savior addressed his Father, the power of working miracles, healing the sick, casting out devils, and raising the dead. Matthew, 10 chapter. When all these things are properly considered, they set forth the advantages of the apostles of the Savior, which were in Judea, in a very interesting point of light, and show that they were not sent forth to preach to the world, until they had been instructed extensively into the knowledge of the doctrine of Jesus Christ. But now reader, mark: After all this, they had to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, before they could teach the nations or preach the gospel to the world. Such great importance does the Savior attach to the gift of the Holy Spirit, that nothing can be a substitute for it; neither could any learning or instruction, which the apostles had received, or could receive from him, supersede the necessity of it.
Some very important things suggest themselves to the mind, in reflecting on the whole surface of the divine proceedings, in relation to the apostles.
The first is: that so vastly important is the gift of the Holy Spirit, in the salvation of men, that nothing can supply its place.—There is nothing that a man can see with his eyes, or hear with his ears, or handle with his hands, which can supply the place of the Holy Spirit: neither can any instruction, received from prophets, or seers, or even from the Lord Jesus himself, or yet the voice of God, out of the heavens: for all this the disciples had before they received the gift of the Holy Spirit—neither believing, receiving, nor keeping, the word of God, will do; for the apostles had done all this, before they received the gift of the Holy Spirit. They had seen the Lord in the flesh, and after his resurrection from the dead; and had beheld him in his glory, on the mount of transfiguration: but notwithstanding all this, they must receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, or else they could not build up the kingdom of heaven among men.
Another important consideration is, that without the gift of the Holy Spirit the greater part of the teachings of the Savior would have been in vain; for such is the weakness of the human mind, that unless it is strengthened by the Holy Spirit, it would forget the things which it had been taught; and in consequence thereof they would be useless. The Savior told the disciples that the Comforter, which was the Holy Spirit, that he would send into the world, when he went away, should lead them unto all truth, and should bring all things to their remembrance, whatsoever he had said unto them; things which they had forgotten should be restored to them again, by the power of the Holy Spirit, without which gift they would be lost to the disciples forever. This leaves the subject without doubt, that the knowledge which is necessary to salvation, cannot be obtained only through the gift of the Holy Spirit; for the mind of man is not strong enough to retain it, only as it is strengthened by the power of the Spirit of God.
A third reflection is, that unless the Holy Spirit dwells with a man, and is in him, he cannot have the necessary knowledge of the things of Jesus, in order to his salvation. It is only necessary here to remark, that the apostles had seen Jesus in the flesh, and had beheld his glory when he was transfigured before them: they were also with him forty days after he rose from the dead, and beheld him ascend up into glory, and the angels came and administered unto them, but not withstanding all this, the Savior told them that when the Spirit came, he should guide them into all truth, and should take of the things of his and show them unto them—[the disciples.] This is as much as to say, that the Holy Spirit, when it came, should give them an understanding of all things which they had seen, and heard, and handled: so that we can see, that seeing, hearing and handling, would have been of no consequence to them, had not the Spirit of promise been sent down upon them; for they would not have had the understanding of them, sufficiently, to have done them any eternal good. For observe, the Spirit was to lead them into ALL truth: and if so, they could not have understood any truth without it, or else it could not lead them into ALL truth, if they were in it before they received the Spirit.
A fourth reflection is, that if it were necessary for the apostles, after all the advantages they had; and after all they had seen, heard and handled, of the word of life, needed the gift of the Holy Spirit, to enable them to build up the church of God, or to establish the kingdom of God in the world, no others with less advantages can do the work of God, unless they have also received this gift to the same extent that the apostles did. For no less degree of the Spirit than what they received could have enabled them to have established the kingdom of God in the world.
From the whole surface of this matter one thing is exceedingly plain, and that is, that the Spirit of God fills a large place in the plan of salvation, and that no people can be saved without the enjoyment of it; that its place cannot be supplied by any thing else: that it is essential to an understanding of the things of God, that no man can be safe to present himself before the world, in the attitude of a servant of Jesus Christ, unless he has first received the gift of the Holy Spirit: it matters not how great his learning or his literary attainments, neither what he had seen, or heard or handled, or read, or believed, or received, or kept; for all these, without the gift of the Holy Spirit, would be insufficient: for without it he could not understand the things of Jesus, though the heavens might have been opened to his view, and the angels have ministered unto him: and though he had heard the voice of God out of the heavens, still without the gift of the Holy Spirit he could not be the servant of Jesus Christ, nor build up his kingdom in the world: So important is the gift of the Holy Spirit in the salvation of men.