The Future of Zion and the Law of Tithing

I am truly thankful for the privilege of speaking here this morning to so many Latter-day Saints, convened in this semi-annual conference of the Church; and while I realize my weakness I also realize that I can claim the blessings of our Heavenly Father, through the divine Spirit that may be present at this conference. I ask that you invoke the blessings of our Father upon me for the few moments that I stand before you; also that the same blessing may be given to all the speakers during this conference. I ask, too, that you offer a silent prayer to our Father this morning in behalf of our beloved President, who is ill, that he may be blessed and restored, and that he may have the strength to come here and speak to the people. ¶

I have been thinking this morning what subject to speak upon that would be of benefit to the people who have gathered here to receive the word of the Lord. What subject could I touch upon that would make us better Latter-day Saints, better fathers and mothers, and better citizens of this great government? My mind reverted to a revelation that was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, as found in section 64 of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, a portion of which I will read: ¶

"Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and the obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days; "And the rebellious shall be cut off out of the land of Zion, and shall be sent away, and shall not inherit the land: ¶

"For, verily, I say that the rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked out. ¶

"Behold, I, the Lord, have made my Church in these last days like unto a judge sitting on a hill, or in a high place, to judge the nations; "For it shall come to pass that the inhabitants of Zion shall judge all things pertaining to Zion; "And liars and hypocrites shall be proved by them, and they who are not Apostles and Prophets shall be known. ¶

"And even the bishop, who is a judge, and his counselors, if they are not faithful in their stewardships, shall be condemned, and others shall be planted in their stead; "For, behold, I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord shall be upon her, "And she shall be an ensign unto the people, and there shall come unto her out of every nation under heaven. ¶

"And the day shall come when the nations of the earth shall tremble because of her terrible ones. The Lord hath spoken it. Amen." ¶

We learn from the "Pearl of Great Price" that when the subject was discussed in the Heavens of forming this earth, there was even then light and darkness, good and evil, obedience and disobedience, a willing heart and a selfish nature. These conditions and principles are in the hearts of the people of the world today. The mission that was given to Jesus Christ, to come upon the earth, was given on account of His obedience to the will and plan laid down by our Father. On the other hand, Satan desired to become a law unto himself, and whatever sacrifice he made, he wished it to be credited unto himself, and not unto the Father. Lucifer desired to introduce a plan contrary to the will of the Father, and then wanted His honor and said, "I will save every soul of man, wherefore give me thine honor." He wanted to go contrary to the will of his Father, and sought to deprive man of his free agency, and thus make him a mere machine. The offer of Jesus to act as mediator and redeemer, according to the plan decided upon in the council of the Gods, was accepted, and the plans and services of Lucifer were rejected. In his anger Lucifer rebelled against God and Jesus, using the very agency of which he had just attempted to rob all of God's children. When this earth was formed and our first parents had children that same spirit of obedience and disobedience, of good and evil, of a willing heart and a selfish nature, was manifested in their sons Abel and Cain. In reading the history of God's people in all dispensations I can see that that great law of obedience to the requirements of the Father has been one of the foundation stones of the Church. It always will be so. One of the greatest examples of obedience for us to study is that of father Abraham. The Lord had promised him that through him and his seed all the earth should be blessed, and yet He desired to know if Abraham was willing to give Him his heart, and be true to him even unto death and fulfill all His commandments, even if it looked to be an utter impossibility for him to carry out the command and at the same time receive the promise of the Lord. The Lord told him that he was to offer up his only son Isaac as a sacrifice. Did he hesitate, or stop to enquire of the Lord how He could fulfill the promise made him if Isaac were sacrificed? Not so. Abraham, in his obedience to the Father, prepared the sticks, placed them upon the back of the boy, started for the hill Moriah to carry out the command of God; and while upon the way the boy said unto his Father, "Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham replied, "My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering." They built the altar, and Isaac was placed upon it; and as Abraham drew forth his hand to execute the command of God, the angel of the Lord stayed him. Then his answer to his son was verified, for God provided a ram for the offering. In this Abraham proved to God that his heart was right before Him, and he was willing to do whatever was required of him. ¶

All blessings that are promised by the Master are predicated upon obedience to the laws. It is right that it should be so; it is nothing but what an honest soul should expect. If we live to the principle of charity, we can expect the benefits that are derived from so living. If we live to the law of consecration, we can claim of the Lord the blessings attached to this great principle. If we live to the law of tithing, we have a right to claim the blessings that were promised through Malachi to those who would observe it. I do not feel that it is necessary to speak long upon the subject of tithing, and perhaps some who do not practice the same may hope that we will not mention it; but the man or the woman who practices this principle never gets tired of hearing testimonies of the Elders in regard to this law. In passing I want to leave my testimony that God has given us the law of tithing, and He blesses the person that lives strictly in accordance with it. The blessings of the Lord are upon those who pay their tithing, no matter what the amount may be. I testify to you that people who live to this law have more comfort and peace in their homes, are more contented in their souls, have more faith that the Lord will answer their prayers, have more pleasure in fulfilling the requirements of the Church, and more confidence in the promises of God, than those who do not live this law. It is but natural that this should be so. I thank the Lord that my parents believed in the law of tithing. I thank the Lord that the first means which God ever placed into my hands, I had a mother who watched over me so carefully that she taught and guided me to pay my tithing on the same. I received this principle from my parents not only by precept, but by example as well, for they lived the law, because they had implicit faith in the God they worshiped. ¶

We hear the Apostles, the Patriarchs, the High Priests, the Seventies and Elders pray time and time again for the Lord to hasten the day for the redemption of Zion, when we can build a temple to the Most High God in that land, from whence the law of the Lord shall go forth, and where we shall be privileged to live according to the revealed will of God in very deed. I want to promise the people here that that day never will come until we have at least learned to keep the lesser law, of tithing; and I believe that before Jackson county shall be given to us as a Zion, those at least who shall be called to establish the same will have to learn obedience to that great principle which was revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith; also the principle of consecration. Are we doing anything, my brethren and sisters, to fit us to fulfill these prayers which are offered to God? Are we qualifying ourselves, that when the time comes for it we will be prepared to go and obey that command? The law of consecration was revealed to this Church, but in its practice the people were found wanting, and God in His mercy had compassion on us when He saw we could not live it, and revealed the law of tithing to take its place temporarily. I hope to live to see the day when the law of consecration will be the law of this Church, and when men who hold the Priesthood will think more of the principle, and enter into it when called by the mounthpiece of God, than they do of all their earthly possessions. We have got to improve. President Joseph F. Smith this morning called our attention to the fact that some of the people are using tobacco, profaning the name of the Lord, and showing disrespect to the Priesthood of God, as well as other evils that are creeping in among us. Cannot you see, my brethren and sisters, that so long as these evils exist to any great extent among the members of our Church it will be impossible to keep the higher law of the Lord? My prayer always is, "O Father, fit and prepare me and Thy people to live not only the law of tithes and offerings, but the law of consecration, also when it shall come. May the selfishness that is in my nature be removed, so that when this great law shall come I will be prepared to say, Thy will, O God, not mine, be done." The Lord has not left us without an example of this great law. In the early history of this world Enoch and his people became perfect by living the law of consecration and sanctification. They were wiling to give their hearts to God, and through obedience to Him fulfilled that law. We are told that the people were so perfect that the city of Enoch was taken from this earth. I know as well as I know that I live, that this great principle which God has revealed is the only one whereby the poor of this earth can be redeemed as a whole from their present condition. If you will take the Doctrine and Covenants and read carefully the revelations that were given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, you will notice that one of the great principles taught in them is the redemption of the poor and the bringing of mankind on an equality, temporally and spiritually. There are millions of people today groaning under oppression and tyranny, many of them unjustly, through the lack of a proper distribution of the blessings of God. He has not been unmindful of his children. We see on all sides an abundance, plenty for all, but the world has lost sight of the teachings of the Master. ¶

This condition has excited the best thought of philosophers. Many philanthropic men have tried, through very liberal donations, to establish plans for the temporal betterment of the class of people in whom they were interested; but it was simply like throwing a stone in the brook — you see the ripple for a few moments, and then all is gone. No man-made laws will ever accomplish the object sought. God has revealed this great law of consecration and sanctification to us, that there may be no poor among us; for under it every man and woman will have a stewardship and be provided for. I never expect to see the day when we shall all have just the same— the same number of horses and carriages, or the same kind of a house: but I do expect to see the time come when this great law will equalize those who believe and practice it, until there shall be as near a perfect people upon this earth as it is possible to make us with our selfish natures. If ever this law becomes universal I look for a reign of peace upon the earth. If this law had been lived up to by this people in the beginning, I think the redemption of Zion would have been accomplished by this time, or at least a great deal nearer than it is today. When this law is an accomplished fact in the world, the means spent by nations today in wars will not have to be employed that way, and then the time will be at hand when the swords shall be turned into plowshares and spears into pruning-hooks. ¶

I trust that the Spirit of the Lord will be with the people, so that they will know that by obedience to the commandments of the Lord the blessings He has promised will come to them, and that they will have faith, even as our father Abraham had faith, and also the Apostles and Prophets of old. We have the examples of our fathers and mothers, the example of the Prophet Joseph, and those who have presided over this Church from his time to the present, and we should try to follow in their footsteps. I know that there are many people in this Church who today are willing to sacrifice even their lives for the Gospel's sake. There are many who have such implicit faith and confidence in God that if they were required to sacrifice all they had upon earth, and life itself, they would willingly do it. They have the faith that Father Abraham had. I hope that the people as a whole will listen to the pleadings that have been made by the Prophet of the Lord, and at least live to the law of tithing, that by doing so we may learn to place ourselves in a position to accept the higher law when it is given again. I believe that the "Mormon" people, as a whole, look after their poor better than any other people upon the earth; and yet we are far from living to the requirements that are made of us as a people. But I also want to say that there are many Latter-day Saints, and they are numbered by the thousands, who are living strictly to the law and paying an honest tithing unto the Lord. ¶

I thought of the song that is recorded in the 84th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, and I felt that when we as a people are willing, and not only willing but anxious, to live the law of consecration, this new song will be a good thing for every soul to sing. It says: ¶

"The Lord hath brought again Zion. The Lord hath redeemed His people, Israel. ¶

According to the election of grace, Which was brought to pass by the faith And covenant of their fathers. ¶

The Lord hath redeemed His people, And Satan is bound, and time is no longer The Lord hath gathered all things in one; The Lord hath brought down Zion from above, The Lord hath brought up Zion from beneath. ¶

The earth hath travailed and brought forth her strength; And truth is established in her bowels; And the heavens have smiled upon her; And she is clothed with the glory of her God; For He stands in the midst of His people. ¶

Glory, and honor, and power, and might, Be ascribed to our God; for He is full of mercy, Justice, grace and truth, and peace, For ever and ever. Amen." ¶