Without Disclosing My True Identity
priesthood power and authority. This “power and authority” is the voice of our humanity
and the feelings of peace that emanate through our souls.
Every human is endowed with the same foundationalized humanity in their spirit,
or essence, when first born and entering this world. And if we become as a little child and
remember this “higher priesthood that was confirmed upon us” as infants, just like it was
with John, then we will be more apt to listen to the words of Jesus Christ—which are the
“fullness of the everlasting Gospel.” We would learn that nothing is important in our lives
except how we treat ourselves and each other in relation to the way that a little child treats
themselves and other little children.
The Vanity and Unbelief of the Saints Brought Them Under Condemnation
Joseph went on to condemn the people for not desiring the “higher priesthood,” but
rather, as Israel under Moses, accepting and being satisfied with the “lower priesthood,” the
one representative of the wrath of the Lord. He condemned the people for their “darkened
minds because of unbelief, and because you have treated lightly the things you have
received,”^31 referring to the “fullness of the everlasting Gospel as delivered by the Savior to
the ancient inhabitants” recorded in the Book of Mormon. He continued:
Which vanity and unbelief have brought the whole church under
condemnation. And this condemnation resteth upon the children of Zion,
even all. And they shall remain under this condemnation until they repent
and remember the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon and the former
commandments which I have given them, not only to say, but to do
according to that which I have written.^32“The former commandments which I have given them” mentioned above is the
“fullness of the everlasting Gospel” that is given in the Book of Mormon as “delivered by
the Savior to the ancient inhabitants.” The people would not believe that this was all they
needed to do (thus, their unbelief). They wanted to set themselves above others by
establishing a church that they believed was “the only true and living church upon the
face of the whole earth”^33 (thus, their vanity).
Choosing Between the Higher and Lower Laws—Knowing the Mysteries of
God vs. Obeying Strict Ordinances
The people never got it, any more than the people of Israel understood Moses.^34
The higher priesthood was never received by the LDS/Mormon people, at least not
by those whose vanity and unbelief turned it into something that it was not. The Holy
Priesthood is and always will be an understanding of the real truth, i.e., the
“fullness of the mysteries of God.”^35
Real truth is not in any way exclusive to what gender, what age, or what color a
person may be.^36 We were all ordained to this power and authority as infants, and we can
only retain this power and authority as we live our lives, “not only to say, but to do
according to that which [is] written”^37 in the “fullness of the everlasting Gospel as delivered
by the Savior.” It simply means that we must look at the world and treat each other as an
infant looks at the world and treats others. There is no other way.