“I say to the Latter-day Saints the keys of the kingdom of God are here, and they are going to stay here, too, until the coming of the Son of Man. Let all Israel understand that. They may not rest upon my head but a short time, but they will then rest on the head of another apostle, and another after him, and so continue until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in the clouds of heaven.” 4

“When the Lord gave the keys of the kingdom of God, the keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood, of the apostleship, and sealed them upon the head of Joseph Smith, He sealed them upon his head to stay here upon the earth until the coming of the Son of Man. Well might Brigham Young say, ‘The keys of the kingdom of God are here.’ They were with him to the day of his death. They then rested upon the head of another man﻿—President John Taylor. He held those keys to the hour of his death. They then fell by turn, or in the providence of God, upon Wilford Woodruff.

This declaration was consistent with his unswerving loyalty to the Presidents of the Church when he served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. When he became the President of the Church himself, he testified of his divine calling and assured the Saints that they would always be led by a living prophet. He said:

When Elder Woodruff agreed to give up his ponies, he simply chose to obey President Young’s instructions; he did not expect a reward for his deed. However, he knew of the blessings that come from following the living prophet. A few months earlier he had declared, “The Lord will open the mind of Brother Brigham and lead him into many principles that pertain to the salvation of this people, and we cannot close up our minds and say that we will go so far and no farther; this we cannot do without jeopardising our standing before God.” 3

“President Young said to me as I came in, ‘Have you a team [of horses]?’ I told him I had a pair of small ponies. He asked if I could spare them. I hesitated a moment and said, ‘Yes sir, I can do anything that is wanted.’ He then said, ‘I have a good pair of horses that I want to let you have, as you are laboring here.’ I was taken quite surprised. It came very unexpected to me. I accepted the horses and was thankful, though perhaps I did not say it at the time.” 2

Elder Wilford Woodruff was at home one afternoon when he received word that President Brigham Young wanted to see him at the Church Historian’s Office. Upon receiving this request from the President of the Church, Elder Woodruff “immediately went to the office,” 1 where he was then serving as Assistant Church Historian. He later recorded in his journal:

Teachings of Wilford Woodruff

From the days of Adam, the Lord has raised up prophets to govern His Church and warn the inhabitants of the earth. God has led this Church from the beginning, by prophets and inspired men. He will lead this Church until the scene is wound up.5 God never had a church or a people, in any age of the world, that were governed and controlled except by revelation. The living oracles of God were among them﻿—those who held the keys of the kingdom, and they had to receive revelation to assist them in all their work.6 The Lord has never sent judgments upon any generation which we have any knowledge of until he has raised up prophets and inspired men to warn the inhabitants of the earth. This is the course the Lord has dealt with all men from the days of Father Adam to the present time.7

Through living prophets, the Lord reveals His will for the Church and leads us on the path to eternal life. The Lord has taught us … that it matters not whether he speaks from heaven by his own voice, or by the ministration of angels, or by the mouth of his servants when they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost, it is all the same the mind and will of God [see D&C 1:38].8 The law of God is in the mouths of those who are set to lead us.9 If we had before us every revelation which God ever gave to man; if we had the Book of Enoch; if we had the untranslated plates before us in the English language; if we had the records of the Revelator St. John which are sealed up, and all other revelations, and they were piled up here a hundred feet high, the church and kingdom of God could not grow, in this or any other age of the world, without the living oracles of God.10 We have revelation with us. True, the leaders of this Church since the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith have not [published] many revelations. Joseph Smith brought forth the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and it is a grand volume of revelation﻿—one of the most glorious records ever given of God to man on the earth. But I want to say that Brother Brigham Young did not live without revelation. He always had revelation with him. He could not labor without it; he could not preach or do the will of God without it. Nor can any man that occupies that position. The Lord would permit no man to stand at the head of this Church unless he was governed and controlled by revelation. We are feeble instruments﻿—weak worms of the dust; but God has chosen the weak things of the earth to confound the wise, and to build up His Zion, and He gives us revelation and makes known unto us His mind and will.11 It is different with us than with the world; we have a main channel through which to receive our light, knowledge and blessings. … You may take the smartest men that talent and learning ever made and put them in the church of God, and they never can get ahead of their leader. Their wisdom would be turned into folly. Why? Because they are not called to lead. If a man has never learned a letter of a book, if the Lord calls upon him to lead the church and kingdom of God, he will give him power to do it. We have had these lessons laid before us day after day, calling upon us to be united, and our hearts to become as the heart of one man, that our prayers and works may be centered to one point in carrying out the counsel of our head. The Lord will lead [the President of the Church] where he wants him to go. We know God is with him, and has led him all the time. … It requires [the prophet] to tell us what is right and what is wrong in many things, because that is his place and calling. … A perfect channel exists between the Lord and him, through which he obtains wisdom, which is diffused through other channels to the people. That we know. We have got to learn to bring this knowledge into practice.12 The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place.13 I hope we may all pursue the course laid down for us by the servants of the Lord, for if we do this I know that we shall be safe in this world, and secure happiness and exaltation in the world to come. … If we are faithful they will lead us in the way of life, and in as much as we have faith to believe in their instructions, in the teachings of the Holy Spirit through them, we are always in the safe path, and shall be sure of our reward.14

We sustain the living prophet and other Church leaders by praying for them and following their counsel. I and other men, the apostles, and all who are called to officiate in the name of the Lord need the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints.15 While I live I want to be true and faithful to my God and to the Saints. One of the greatest blessings of God to me has been the fact that myself and counselors live in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, and I have felt to be humbled in the dust before the Lord for this. We know that you pray for us. We know that you have respect for us. And we live upon this principle. … The Lord has “chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; … and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are.” [See 1 Corinthians 1:27–28.] We feel our weaknesses. I wish myself that I were a better man than I am. Of course, I have endeavored to do about the best I could in my weak way. I still wish to do so. But I am dependent upon the Lord and upon the prayers of the Saints, the same as my brethren.16 I hope my brethren and sisters will feel in their hearts to sustain the Presidency of this Church by their faith, works, and prayers, and not suffer them to carry all the load, while we hide ourselves in the rear. If we should do this we are not worthy, we are not worthy of our position as Elders in Israel, and fathers and mothers in Israel. Let each one bear their share; and if we will correct our own follies, and set in order our own houses, and do that which is right, we shall then do some good, and help to lift the load that rests upon those that lead. … It is grievous to [the President of the Church] when he sees the people reckless in pursuing their own course leading them to destruction; when they are not willing to take his counsel and abide the doctrines he teaches; but when he sees the people willing to obey wholesome counsel, and endeavor to sanctify themselves before the Lord, he feels strengthened and sustained.17 When we raise our hands in a sustaining vote, we pledge to “sustain the Presidency of this Church by [our] faith, works, and prayers.”