Carrying the Gospel to the Nations

I am very desirous that I may have your attention as well as your faith and prayers for a short time. I am able to testify to the truth of all that has been spoken unto you during this conference. I believe with all my heart ¶

in the temporal salvation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I believe that the Lord will deliver us from our troubles and difficulties if we will observe all His words. I am also very deeply interested In the spiritual salvation of the children of men. I believe that that angel which John saw flying in the midst of Heaven with the everlasting Gospel to preach to every nation, kindred, tongue and people, came to the Prophet Joseph Smith and delivered his message, and that a great responsibility rests upon the Church today to see to it that this message is delivered to the nations of the earth. As has been stated, there are doubtless between seventeen and eighteen hundred missionaries throughout the world preaching the Gospel. In my opinion, not less than five hundred thousand dollars is spent each year in sending out our Elders, in distributing books and tracts and in preaching the Gospel throughout the world. ¶

I desire to speak, if I can have the spirit of my calling, more particularly to the Seventies of the Church of Jesus Christ. The special calling of the First Council of Seventy is as witnesses of the Lord to the nations of the earth, under the direction of the Twelve Apostles. There are something like one hundred and twenty-two quorums of Seventy in the Church of Jesus Christ, numbering nearly eight thousand men. Over each quorum there are seven Presidents, the Lord having arranged it so that six of them can go on missions, and always leave one to look after the remainder. And in my opinion there should not be very many remaining to look after. ¶

I want to read from the book of Doctrine and Covenants and ascertain what the Lord has to say about the Seventies. You will have to excuse me for occupying the time in talking about the Seventies, for our labor among them puts me a good deal in mind of the Filipinos. They shoot and then run, and that is about the way we have been doing. We would have a little time between meetings to talk to our Seventies; then we would shoot and run and never ascertain whether we had killed any one or not— that is ¶

metaphorically speaking—"We did not know whether we had any good effect on our Seventies or not. I believe that our Seventies are not doing their work as they should do it. I know you Seventies will not like it, and it will not make me popular with you, but I desire to say that there is a percentage of the Seventies than whom there are no more faithful men in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But the other percentage I have not much to say about. This is what the Lord says: ¶

"And it is according to the vision, showing the order of the Seventy, that they should have seven Presidents to preside over them, chosen out of the number of the Seventy. ¶

"And the seventh President of these Presidents is to preside over the six; ¶

"And these seven Presidents are to choose other Seventy besides the First Seventy, to whom they belong, and are to preside over them; ¶

"And also other Seventy, until seven times Seventy, if the labor in the vineyard of necessity requires it. ¶

"And these Seventy are to be traveling ministers unto the Gentiles first, and also unto the Jews; ¶

"Whereas other officers of the Church, who belong not unto the Twelve, neither to the Seventy, are not under the responsibility to travel among all nations, but are to travel as their circumstances shall allow, notwithstanding they may hold as high and responsible offices in the Church. ¶

"Wherefore now let every man learn his duty and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence. ¶

"He that is slothful shall not be counted worthy to stand, and he that learns not his duty and shows himself not approved, shall not be counted worthy to stand. Even so. Amen." ¶

I want to ask the Latter-day Saints if they have ever heard of a Seventy being handled that is slothful and careless regarding his duties. I have heard of men being handled who waded out into the mysteries of the kingdom and commenced advocating false doctrine. One brother asked me the other day if I had ever heard of a man being handled for not knowing anything, and I could not remember a single case of that kind in the history of the Church. I want to say to the Seventies, the High Priests and the Elders, that I do not believe the Lord is well pleased with the children of men in that they do not qualify themselves and learn their duty and perform the labor that rests ¶

upon them. I desire to proclaim from this stand that, as a Seventy in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as a witness of the Lord to the nations of the earth, I am willing to go forth and cry aloud to the children of men repentance, and I ask no Seventy to do what I am not willing to do myself. I have the faith to testify, and am willing to do so, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, notwithstanding it is unpopular to do this. I consider that Elder Ben E. Rich and Elder Kelsch and other Elders that have been appointed to labor in the ministry have never had conferred upon them greater blessings and honors in all their history. They are honored of God, and if they have the spirit of God resting upon them, which they do have, they will be sorrowful when they are released from that labor, and when they have to come back and go to their little plodding along, hunting their little farm and getting a little work to do. I read in the scriptures that some one says that he would rather be a living dog than a dead lion. So far as I am concerned, I would rather be a dead lion. I would rather go forth and preach the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and I want to do it while I am young and full of vigor and life. When I get old I will come back and go into the High Priests' quorum and labor, while some other young men preach the Gospel. I believe that the Seventies quorums ought to be made up of young men. The saying is "Old men for counsel and young men for war," and this is a warfare. If we do not kill anybody, everybody wars upon us. I believe that aged men ought to go into the High Priests' quorum. I want to say it right from this stand, so that when they call upon us for missionaries, we will have able-bodied men and men who are willing to go forth and preach the Gospel. We do not want any Seventies that are run by their wives either. I do not blame the wives for running their husbands, because I think we have Seventies that their wives ought to run. I hear it almost every day (I do not want you to think it at home either) "What a lovely husband that man is. If I only had a husband like that I would be happy " ¶

I ask what kind of a husband he is. "Well, he shakes the quilts, he puts the carpets down, he helps wash the dishes, he helps dress the children," etc. Well, if it takes all that to make a good man, you cannot count me in among them. I would rather go on a mission, and I would rather stay and die with my neck in the collar. I think it is honorable to do these things when you are at home, but if I have to do them, I want to stay at home but a very little while. I do not believe that God gave a man the Holy Melchisedek Priesthood and ordained him a Seventy in the Church of Jesus Christ, to be tagging after one little woman and spending his whole life in that way. That is what I want to say to you Seventies; I have said it and I don't propose to take it back. The Lord bless you. Amen. ¶