Are We God’s People?

Do we believe this or not?

No other government, kingdom, dominion, authority, power, rule, or law may be acknowledged by my people.

Do we, are we God’s people?

Do we want to be God’s people?

By our fruits, we shall be known. If we are not God’s people, then we will recognize a different authority.

But if we are God’s people, which I strive to be, this is the only government, kingdom, dominion, authority, power, rule, or law that I will acknowledge.

As John Taylor explained that we are today a kingdom of priests holding to a very great extent, the holy priesthood, and it is essential that we submit ourselves to the laws of that priesthood and be governed by them in all of our actions, not just, you know, the things that you need to do to be able to go to church on Sunday, but in everything that we do, because it is a kingdom.

And again, in that declaration by the Council of Fifty, “I the Lord will do nothing but what I have revealed or shall reveal unto my servants the prophets, and I have appointed one man, holding the keys and authority, pretending to my holy priesthood, to whom I will reveal my laws, my statutes, my ordinances, my judgments, my will and pleasure concerning my kingdom on the earth.

But our agency, of course, is still protected, as John Taylor explains here, as the proper mode of government is this.

God first speaks, and then the people have their action.

It is for them to say whether they will have his dictation or not.

The government of God is not a species of priestcraft after the order of the Church of Rome, where one man dictates and everybody obeys without having a voice in it.

We have our voice and agency and act with the most perfect freedom.

Still, we believe there is correct order.

We have our agency, but of course there is correct order to things.