| 429 Behold! I say unto you, I have a mission in store for my servant William, and my servant Hyrum, and for them alone, and let my servant Joseph tarry at home, for he is needed; the remainder I will shew [show] unto you hereafter, even so, amen.
And again, verily I say unto you, if my servant Sidney will serve me and be a counsellor [counselor] unto my servant Joseph, let him arise, and come up and stand in the office of his calling and humble himself before me; and if he will offer unto me an acceptable offering and acknowledgments, and remain with my people; behold I the Lord your God will heal him that he shall be healed, and he shall lift up his voice again on the mountains and be a spokesman before my face. Let him come and locate his family in the neighborhood in which my servant Joseph resides, and in all his journeyings let him lift up his voice as with the sound of a trump and warn the inhabitants of the earth to flee the wrath to come; let him assist my servant Joseph, and also, let my servant William Law assist my servant Joseph in making a solemn proclamation unto the Kings of the earth, even as I have before said unto you. If my servant Sidney will do my will, let him not move his family unto the eastern lands, but let him change their habitation even as I have said. Behold it is not my will that he shall seek to find safety and refuge out of the city which I have appointed unto you, even the city of Nauvoo. Verily I say unto you, even now, if he will hearken to my voice it shall be well with him.
To those of our readers who reside at remote distances from this place, and who may have but a very slight acquaintance with the doctrines of onr [our] holy religion, and who, from their scattered situation have not the advantages to obtain instruction in things concerning the Kingdom of God and his purposes in the last days, we intend of occasionally giving them a short synopsis of the discourses, and items of doctrine set forth and investigated by the presidency and the experienced Elders of the church, who address the congregation of the saints at this place.
To this place, we know, the saints abroad look for information and instruction, and we should be pleased if, in the providence of God, they could soon locate themselves in this vicinity, that they might enjoy all the blessings and privileges of their bretheren [brethren] here. But owing to various circumstances, many will probably not be able to move to this place for sometime, and who, undoubtedly, will cheerfully hail any intelligence respecting our proceedings and the doctrines illucidated [elucidated] from time to time, by the authorities of the church.
However, before we enter upon this part of our labor, we would say, that we shall not attempt to give the discourses at length; this we are unable to do, neither have we sufficient space in our columns, but merely to give the outlines of the principle addresses delivered, embracing such matters of faith and doctrine, as shall tend to benefit our bretheren [brethren] in the gospel and the world at large.
In attending to this, we hope that our friends will appreciate the motives that induce us to engage in it, and that we shall meet their approval and support.
Sunday Morning, May 16th, l841.
The indications of the morning promised a beautiful day. At 10 o'clock A. M. a large concourse of the saints assembled on the meeting ground and were addressed by Pres. Joseph Smith, who spoke at considerable length. He commenced his observations by remarking that the kindness of our Heavenly Father, called for our heartfelt gratitude. He then observed that satan was generally blamed for the evils which we did, but if he was the cause of all our wickedness, men could not be condemned. The devil cannot compel mankind to evil, all was voluntary.-Those who resist the spirit of God, are liable to be led into temptation, and then the association of heaven is withdrawn from those who refuse to be made partakers of such great glory-God would not exert any compulsory means and the Devil could not; and such ideas as were entertained by many were absurd. The creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but Christ subjected the same in hope-we are all subject to vanity while we travel through the crooked paths, and difficulties which surround us. Where is the man that is free from vanity? None ever were
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