[396] III Nephi xxvi, 17-18; xxviii, 18; IV Nephi i, 1.
=27.= Nearly four centuries later, we hear the same proclamation from the lips of Mormon.[401] And Moroni, his son, the solitary representative of a once mighty people, while mourning the destruction of his kindred, leaves what at the time he supposed would be his farewell testimony to the truth of this doctrine;[402] then being spared contrary to his expectations, he reverts again to the sacred theme, realizing the incalculable worth of the doctrine unto any and all who would read his pages; and in what might be regarded as his last words, he testifies to baptism by water and the Spirit as the means of salvation.[403]
=28.= And this great principle, proclaimed of old, remains unaltered today; it is truth and changes not. The elders of the Church today have been commissioned in almost the same words as were used in authorizing the apostles of old:--"Go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, acting in the authority which I have given you, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned."[404] And again, hear the word of the Lord through Joseph the Prophet unto the elders of the Church:--"Therefore, as I said unto mine apostles I say unto you again, that every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by water for the remission of sins shall receive the Holy Ghost." But, "verily, verily I say unto you, they who believe not on your words, and are not baptized in water, in my name, for the remission of their sins, that they may receive the Holy Ghost, shall be damned, and shall not come into my Father's kingdom where my Father and I am."[405] In obedience to these commands, the elders of this Church have continued to proclaim the gospel among the nations, preaching faith, repentance, and baptism by water and the Holy Ghost, as essential to salvation.
[405] Doc. and Cov. lxxxiv, 64, 74; see also cxii, 28-29.
=29.= We have examined the doctrines concerning baptism current among the Jews, the Nephites, and the Church of Jesus Christ in this age, and have found the principles taught to be ever the same. Indeed, we have gone farther back, even to the earliest history of the human race, and have learned that baptism was announced as a saving principle by which Adam was promised forgiveness and salvation. No one has reason to hope for salvation except by complying with the law of God, of which baptism is an essential part.