'Brother Joseph'
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Few in this dispensation, said President Thomas S. Monson, have paid as dearly for an irrevocable testimony of Jesus Christ as did the Prophet Joseph.
Speaking during the Church's commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Joseph Smith, President Monson, first counselor in the First Presidency, explained: "Through Joseph Smith, the gospel — which had been lost during centuries of apostasy — was restored, the priesthood and its keys were received, the doctrines of salvation were revealed, the gospel and temple ordinances — along with the sealing power — were returned and, in 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ was re-established on the earth."
President Monson spoke on a crisp winter evening Dec. 23 in a satellite broadcast from the Conference Center in Salt Lake City.
In his remarks, offered in his customary warm manner, President Monson reminded those listening that the mission of the Prophet Joseph was foretold more than 2,300 years before his birth by Joseph, who was sold into Egypt. "A choice seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins. . ." (2 Nephi 3:7,15).
Emphasizing that by any account the Prophet Joseph Smith "was a remarkable individual," President Monson said that he "never wavered in his testimony of Jesus Christ," though reviled and persecuted.
"His peers watched him lead with dignity and grace, endure hardships, and time and again rise to new challenges until his divine mission was completed. Today that heritage he established still shines for all the world to see. The teachings he translated and his legacy of love for his fellow man continue in the millions of hearts touched by the message he declared so long ago."
President Monson repeated the words of Joseph Smith's last sermon, delivered June 18, 1844. "He very likely knew that he would not again address his people. His concluding remarks were these: 'God has tried you. You are a good people; . . . I love you with all my heart. Greater love hath no man than that he should lay down his life for his friends.' "
Ultimately, President Monson continued, the Prophet was slain by evil men who assumed the Church would collapse after his death. But, as George Q. Cannon, who served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve and as a counselor to four Church presidents, wrote: "The enemies of truth were sure that they had now destroyed the work. And yet it lives, greater and stronger after the lapse of years. It is indestructible, for it is the work of God."
"We do not worship the Prophet Joseph," President Monson explained, "however, he left behind a legacy that enables some 12 million followers today on every continent to proclaim him as a prophet of God. May we, each of us, strive to continue the Prophet Joseph's vision for this work and to magnify his legacy through our works and testimonies to others, that they may know him as we do and that they may experience the peace and joy of the gospel he restored.
"When the Savior returns to the earth in glory, the Prophet Joseph will come forth with the righteous as a resurrected being and will continue to minister under the Savior's direction. As our beloved hymn affirms, 'Millions shall know "Brother Joseph" again.' "
