The Value of Testimony

My brethren and sisters, I hope you will not get weary, and that you will sustain me by your faith and prayers while I occupy a few minutes of the time. I would also like for you to sustain me by your faith and prayers every day in the future, and in return I will endeavor to sustain you by my faith and prayers and by such exertion as the gifts and blessings of the Almighty to me shall enable me to be of benefit and profit to the Latter-day Saints. ¶

It is of very little use to bear testimony that we know that the Gospel is true unless we exemplify that testimony in our daily walk and conversation. The best evidence which we can give to the Lord that we are convinced that President Snow is a Prophet of God is that we shall heed the counsel which has been given through him to this people, and pay our tithing, thus testifying by our works that we do sustain President Lorenzo Snow as the mouthpiece of God to the Latter-day Saints. ¶

There is a statement in the Doctrine and Covenants having a bearing upon those who are sent out to preach the Gospel, and it applies to those who preach the Gospel at home, not only as missionaries bearing offices as general authorities of the Church, but it applies to every Bishop and Elder in Israel, and to the Seventies and Presidents of Seventies, to the lesser Priesthood and all who administer in the various offices assigned unto them. It is this: "Treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man." It is not for the purpose of dwelling upon this quotation that I read it, but to call your attention to another matter: It is the duty of the servants and handmaidens of the Lord, who constitute the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to treasure up the words of eternal life, and then, under the inspiration of the Almighty administer that portion of the word of God that is especially adapted to the wants of the people on the occasion, it is also the duty of every Latter-day Saint to know what is the matter with himself or herself and to know exactly wherein they have come short in keeping and observing the commandments of God. I will venture to say that the instructions of this conference are applicable, to a greater or less degree, to every individual, male or female, who has been in attendance at this conference. It is the duty of the Latter-day Saints to take to themselves that portion of the word of God which is applicable unto them, or which they have not fully exemplified by their conduct and lives heretofore, and make a distinct and personal application of the same to themselves in the future. If there is any one here who has exemplified these instructions fully, who has not been derelict in his or her duty, having fulfilled it to the fullest extent, taking into consideration every injunction of the Gospel and every requirement of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please hold up your right hand. I would like to see you. And I presume we are all a little derelict and that there is a necessity for a reformation upon our part. ¶

It is certainly unnecessary for us to rehearse this afternoon the promises extended to those that are faithful, unto those who are diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and the great disadvantages and the disapproval of Heaven if we keep not the commandments of the Lord. We must remember that we have taken upon us the most solemn obligations that were ever assumed by men and women upon the face of the earth. This is the great and last dispensation, a dispensation in which is comprehended all the keys, blessings and powers and every measure of divine authority which has been enjoyed by any and all previous dispensations of the Gospel, from father Adam down to the present period of time. Upon our shoulders rest the responsibilities of all these dispensations combined together, as it were. It is the dispensation of the fullness of times. We have made sacred covenants, in sacred places, and those covenants mean something. When the Lord revealed them through His servant, the ¶

Prophet Joseph, as applying to this dispensation, it was designed that they should be attended, when strictly observed, by the blessings and power of Almighty God, and it was designed that if those sacred covenants should be violated and trampled in the dust of the earth, God would not be mocked, and that His judgments would come upon His people unless they exemplified the principles of the Gospel in their daily walk and conversation. Now, these things, my brethren and sisters, have been brought to the attention of the Latter-day Saints, in the instructions of this general conference. Let us reflect upon them. Let every man and woman ask himself or herself the question, Where have I been derelict? In what duty have I been neglectful? Can I improve? And then let us consider the instructions given at this conference, and especially that portion that would be applicable to us individually. Let us go forth from this time and pay our tithes and offerings, and consecrate as much of our property to the cause of God, to the liquidating of the debts and obligations of this Church, as is possible for us. I say to you that it is the easiest way to secure the blessings and protection of Almighty God. The Prophet of the Lord has said to us more than once, since he received the manifestation in the city of St. George, that the Latter-day Saints must pay their tithing or they shall not be entitled to the blessings of the house of the Lord, and shall be subject to the persecution and tyranny of their enemies. He has also said to us more than once that if we would pay our tithing as we should the Lord would bless us abundantly, spiritually and temporally. I would not have you pay your tithing for a selfish motive. I would not desire to pay my own tithing with the idea in view that the Lord would enrich me in a temporal capacity. The riches of this earth are not the choicest the Lord has to bestow. He may bestow them upon us, and they are necessary for the promotion of the work of God, in a material sense, but the choicest blessing that comes to the Latter-day Saints is the rich and choice inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to enlighten our minds upon the things of God and to give us an ¶

influence among the children of men that will enable us to verify the injunction of the Savior when He said, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven." These are the choicest blessings, my brethren and sisters. ¶

Let me encourage you to make a more earnest effort to enlist your young people in the work of Mutual Improvement and Sabbath School work, and to get them to take advantage of the opportunities that are afforded them in the Gospel, that our sons and daughters may be efficient in proclaiming the Gospel, both at home and abroad. There is a great necessity for this. ¶

I must not occupy your time much longer. It is nearly up. May the Lord bless you, my brethren and sisters, and may we go forth from this conference, to the various Stakes of Zion where we reside, and to our various labors, and to the nations of the earth, with the spirit of this conference, disseminating it among the people of God and among the peoples of this earth. ¶

I bear to you my testimony that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of the living God. I bear testimony to you that the Father, the Almighty, and His Son, Jesus Christ, presented themselves to that boy Prophet in this dispensation. I bear to you my testimony that he received the keys of the gathering of the house of Israel, from the hands of the Prophet Moses, that he received the keys for the building of temples and the redemption of the dead, from the Prophet Elijah, who appeared personally to him and restored those keys. I bear testimony to you that the great Prince Michael, the Archangel, has delivered to him the keys connecting, by genealogy, the generations of men, and binding them together in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, from the beginning down to the latest period of time, in this dispensation. These keys have been restored to the earth. I rejoice in the Gospel. I am under obligations to the Almighty, and I feel my obligations to Him. God has always given me something to do and has opened up the way before me and shown me what my calling was. I want to say to the young men in Israel, if you are laboring in any doubt as to what you should do in ¶

life, go to God in prayer and ask Him what you should do, and let Him guide you by His Spirit, and He will do it. We are the people of God, and He has promised to hear and answer our prayers. I want to admonish you to respect the principles of the everlasting Gospel, no matter what they are, no matter if they be the principles that are assaulted by our enemies. They are the principles of eternal truth, and God has revealed and established them upon the earth, and He will maintain them, and Zion will be established, and the kingdom of God will grow in power, and the Latter-day Saints will be prepared for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and His reign upon the earth. ¶

These are my testimonies. May God bless you, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶