Importance of General Conference

My brethren and sisters, I am gratified for the privilege of being with you at this conference, and especially for the opportunity of being instructed by my brethren. I recognize the fact that I am always in need of instruction and admonition. I believe that this is the case with all the Latter-day Saints. That we may be fed with the bread of life, particularly with that portion of it which is adapted to the immediate wants of the Saints, is the object of this general conference. The Church is sixty-nine and a half years of age ¶

today; and while the congregation does not entirely fill this tabernacle, it is very large compared with the membership of the Church on the 6th day of April, 1830. Soon after the organization of the Church, we are informed, by the Doctrine and Covenants, conferences were inaugurated and it was enjoined by revelation that the various branches of the Church should send representative men to the conference, that they might, if called upon, represent the condition of the work of the Lord in their respective branches, and also that they might partake of the spirit which actuated the Prophet of the Lord and his associates. ¶

The importance of these conferences should be impressed upon the Latter-day Saints throughout the Stakes of Zion; and I believe that the spirit of them is extended to the various nations of the earth. I know that when I have been abroad preaching the Gospel, and a conference has occurred during my absence, I have felt the spirit of the occasion. Though I have been absent in body, I have been present in spirit. I have rejoiced in occasions of this character, though thousands of miles away from them. ¶

When Brother Rudger Clawson read from the scriptures this morning, I was reminded of a statement made in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which I will read. It is in Section 59: ¶

"Behold, blessed, saith the Lord, are they who have come up unto this land with an eye single to my glory, according to my commandments." ¶

This was revealed to the Prophet Joseph at the time the Saints were assembled in Jackson County, Missouri, that land having been designated by the Lord as the great central gathering place of the Saints of God in this dispensation; and the expression in this paragraph: "Blessed saith the Lord are they that have come up unto this land with an eye single to my glory," is very indicative. The importance of it is demonstrated in subsequent history of the efforts of the Saints of God to establish Zion in Jackson County; for in the inception of this work the Lord communicated to the Prophet Joseph Smith all the keys and authority and every essential for the complete establishment and accomplishment of the ¶

work of God in the last days, and this included the principle of union. Brother Woodruff has been speaking to us this morning relative to the necessity of our having material interest in the work of God. I believe, indeed, I know, that if we confined our worship to the mere singing of hymns and the delivering of religious sermons, the Saints of God would die temporally; and if it were all temporal, they would die spiritually. That which is esteemed temporal and which is deprecated in the estimation of the religious world is sanctioned in the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the fact that all things are spiritual with God. We read in the revelations of God, to the Prophet Joseph, this saying of the Lord: ¶

"Wherefore, verily I say unto you, that all things unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I given unto you a law which is temporal." ¶

In the establishment of this work the Lord designed to communicate to the Latter-day Saints those principles which should control and govern them in all the temporal transactions of life. Every Latter-day Saint who has the spirit of the Gospel can understand the necessity of this. I maintain that it is an impossibility for men to be engaged for six days in the week in the business transactions of life and to be controlled by the principles which obtain in the world, and enjoy the spirit of the Gospel upon the Sabbath day and to worship Almighty God acceptably. The trouble with us is to a certain extent, we are Latter-day Saints religiously, but Gentiles financially. We are not controlled in the business affairs of life by that spirit of the Gospel which blesses and sanctifies all temporal transactions and makes them spiritual in the sight of God. In my travels among the people I have felt that the Sermon on the Mount, delivered by the Messiah, was the choicest sermon that ever fell from the lips of any earthly being. It is found in the 5th, 6th and 7th chapters of Matthew and also in the third book of Nephi. The injunctions He there gave are practical, essential, and adapted to the wants of the people of God, in every dispensation and in every part of the earth. The Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith the principles upon which the Zion of God could be ¶

established and perpetuated. He made known unto him that there should be a common interest in the things of God; that every talent should be blessed and sanctified to the establishment of the work of God upon the earth; that no matter what might be the peculiar gifts bestowed upon the individual, they should all be used in the accomplishment of the purposes of God. As a people we are diversely gifted. ¶

I remember reading a revelation in this book of Doctrine and Covenants, wherein the Lord says that He would not make the Prophet Joseph mighty in temporal things, because his work was in another direction. He was entrusted with the keys and the revelations of God, many of which had been kept hid from the foundation of the world, and He laid the foundation of this work and gave revelations which would enable his successors and the people of God for many years to build upon it. The Lord revealed to him what we call the United Order, by which all the time and all the talents of all the Saints of God should be employed for the general benefit of the cause. I remember reading in this book of a branch of the Church that had come up from Colesville, in the State of New York, and they had made a solemn covenant with the Lord that they would consecrate their property to His cause, but they broke that covenant, and it was a very serious sin in the sight of God. They had broken a solemn pledge, and they were made to realize the fulfillment of the saying that God would not be mocked, although it may not bave been so serious and swift a judgment as that pronounced upon Ananias and Sapphira in the days of the Apostles. The effort was made then to establsh the United Order. Jesus sought to establish the work of God more fully than the house of Judah would accept it. You remember that He said to them: ¶

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not. ¶

"38. Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. ¶

"39. For I say unto you, ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, ¶

blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." ¶

The day is coming when they will be willing to accept the principle of gathering which they then rejected. But, as I have said, the effort was made to establish the principles of the United Order subsequent to the ascension of Jesus. They had, it is said, all things in common. On one occasion Ananias came to the Apostle Peter ostensibly to consecrate all that he had received under the blessings of the Almighty. The scriptures inform us that he and his wife had sold a possession and he brought a certain part of it and laid it at the feet of the Apostle Peter, who was the Presiding Apostle of the Church and who had received the keys not only to baptize for the remission of sins, to lay on hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost and to administer the sacrament of the Lord's supper, but also to administer in those things that pertain to the celestial kingdom here upon this earth. Now Peter, under the influence of the Holy Ghost, discerned that the man was not honest in his offering, and he said unto him: ¶

"Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? ¶

"While it remained, was it not thine own? And after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. ¶

"And Ananias, hearing these words, fell down, and gave up the Ghost." ¶

Shortly afterwards his wife came in, and she also lied in relation to this business. These are principles my brethren and sisters, that are attended by the power of God, if they are observed. But they are attended by the judgments of God if they are violated. These principles were carried out in the City of Enoch until the city was translated. They were carried out for a few generations upon this continent by the Nephites, and the Book of Mormon tells us that not one of that generation was lost, because they were equal before the Lord and labored for the same end. The Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph the same principles. The Saints of God failed to carry them out because of selfishness. The Lord revealed that Zion never could be redeemed, only by the law of consecration. Because the people were not prepared to receive and obey it, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery besought the Lord to know what He required at their hands as a tithing. As a result of that condition, He gave the law of tithing wherein is required a tenth of all the interest of the people annually. The Lord specified what the tithing should be used for, and that it should be disbursed under the direction of the Presidency of the Church. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, the people who came to Zion without having an eye single to the glory of God lost their right to an inheritance. When they came up with sinister motives, and their hearts were not devoted to the work of God, they suffered the disapproval of the Almighty. The same statement will apply to us in these valleys of the mountains. We have been led here by the inspiration of the Almighty. The same inspiration has controlled and guided the Presidency of the Church in locating these Stakes of Zion, these cities and towns, throughout the length and breadth of this inter-mountain country. ¶

God has blessed us with abundance. The great majority of the Latter-day Saints own their own homes. If you were to ask them how many of them owned their own homes in their native lands, possibly four-fifths of them would say that they did not. If you were to ask them how many of them conducted a profitable business of their own before they came here, four-fifths would perhaps have to give the same answer. Yet in the prosperity that has attended us in the establishment of our cities, towns and in the building up of the Stakes of Zion in this country, we have not manifested the gratitude to God for his choice blessings which we ought to have done. We have an abundance of blessings, especially of a temporal character, and we ought to be willing to comply with the requirements that are made of us, and honestly and completely pay our tithing and our offerings. ¶

I rejoice in this work. I rejoice in bearing testimony to the truth of the Gospel and that we have a Prophet of God standing at our head today — President Lorenzo Snow — who enjoys the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and whose counsel to the Latter-day Saints comes from the Lord. May God help us to carry it out, and to exemplify in our lives the principles which we testify God has restored to the earth in these last days. I wish to urge the Latter-day Saints to teach their sons and their daughters the principles of the everlasting Gospel. There is a great necessity today, in the various missions abroad, for efficient men to preach the Gospel and to represent the people of God. Many of the young men that go from our Stakes of Zion to preach the Gospel have not studied it. They have not taken advantage of the opportunities afforded them in the Mutual Improvement Association, in the Sunday school and in other organizations. I am sorry to say that some of them have been grossly neglected by their parents. I have found Elders who did not believe in some of the principles of the Gospel. They said they had not been taught to them and they had been neglected by their parents. They had been engaged in herding sheep and other avocations, and had not taken pains to prepare themselves. The result was there was one principle of the Gospel, at least, that they did not understand, and consequently they did not teach or defend it. To my mind this was a very sorrowful condition, and it cast reflection upon the parents and teachers of those Elders. I do not suppose that there is a mission upon the earth that would not desire to have more Elders than they now have, especially Elders who are better qualified and more thoroughly indoctrinated in the principles of the Gospel and more thoroughly imbued with the inspiration of the Holy Ghost before they leave their homes and shoulder the responsibility of carrying the message of eternal life to the nations of the earth. I know this is the case in the United States. I have recently had the privilege of visiting with President Kelch the conferences of the Northern States Mission, and I found the Elders laboring earnestly to spread the Gospel among the people of that region. ¶

Brethren and sisters, let us heed the instructions that are given to us at this conference and endeavor to apply them to our lives, that we may profit thereby. God help us to do so, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶