Sustaining Authority

My Brethren and Sisters: I must say that this call came to me this morning very unexpectedly, and I very much desire that the few moments I shall occupy I may enjoy the Spirit of the Lord and be assisted by your faith and prayers. It is the first time in my life that I have stood before so large a congregation. I have been very much gratified during this conference to listen to the many excellent remarks that have been made by our brethren who have addressed us. I have been edified and built up in my faith, and I have felt to thank the Lord with all my heart that I have been permitted to be numbered with this people. I heard some of the brethren say that they felt honored. Any man may well feel honored to be identified with this marvelous work that the Lord has instituted in the earth in these days. When I entered this building this morning I was thinking that this is the seventy-fourth anniversary of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ upon the earth in the latter days. Seventy-four years ago today the Lord inspired His great prophet, who was then but a youth, to organize His church upon the earth for the last time. He had previously been given the promise, when the angel conferred upon him the Aaronic priesthood, that that priesthood should not be taken from the earth until the sons of Levi should offer an offering unto the Lord in righteousness. That promise has been given to no other dispensation and to no other people, but it was given to this dispensation, indicating that the work which God established through the Prophet should remain; that it was not to be given to another people, and it was not to be taken away again, as had been the case in former dispensations. That promise has no doubt comforted the hearts of the Latter-day Saints in hours of affliction, when the clouds of darkness have obscured the heavens. It is a source of comfort to us today, as it has been ever since the work was introduced. When we look back over this period of time we can praise the name of the Lord and say that so far He hath verified that promise. This Church has grown from that day to the present, in numbers, in strength, in power, in righteousness, and in all that tends to make us mighty in the earth. ¶

When the Savior was asked in His day to tell what should be the signs of His coming and of the end of the world, He told a number of things that should transpire before that time. One of these signs was that the Gospel of the kingdom should be preached to all the world for a witness, and then should the end come. This seems to me the great mission of the Church in this dispensation, to send the Gospel to all nations for a witness before the end shall come. When our Elders go into the various nations of the earth they do not expect to convert all the people, but they go to warn all people, to preach the Gospel for a witness to all nations where they have the privilege of going, that all men may be without an excuse before the Lord in the day of judgment. ¶

I feel honored to have the privilege of being a member of this Church. I feel grateful to my Heavenly Father that He called me from the land that gave me birth; that He sent his servant, our great Apostle of the North, as we used to call him— Brother Erastus Snow — who came to our country to turn the keys of the Gospel to the thousands and tens of thousands of the blood of Israel in those lands. I feel grateful that in my boyhood this message of the Gospel came to me, and that God touched my heart, enlightened my mind and inspired my soul to understand the truth. I felt at once that it was from the Lord, and I have felt so from that time to the present. I have tried to give to this work my best thoughts, my best efforts; and I trust that this shall be my aim in the future. ¶

A little over three years ago the Sanpete Stake of Zion was divided in two, and I was called upon to preside over the North Sanpete Stake, which comprises the north portion of Sanpete county. I want to say here, by way of report of that stake, that we have in that stake a good people; a people who are desirous of serving the Lord and who are trying to keep His commandments and to roll forward this great work. They are endeavoring to pay their tithes and their offerings unto the Lord, and to live so that they may enjoy His Holy Spirit. We have eleven wards in our stake, some very small and some large. They are presided over by some of our best men. Since coming to conference we have been notified of the death of one of our most worthy men — Bishop James A. Allred — who has presided over Spring City ward for the last 23 years. A better man, a better presiding officer, I do not think we have or have had in our stake. He was 84 or 85 years of age, but until within a few months he seemed to be strong, energetic and capable of taking charge of everything pertaining to his ward, and he had its affairs in his hands just as though he were a young man. We regret very much to lose his services, but we feel that he has performed a most glorious mission. He has been an example that will be a strength to that ward and to that stake for years to come. So I may say about our Bishops generally. They are men of God. Our High Council, and our brethren who have charge of the various organizations, are likewise men of God, and are trying to perform their duty to the very best of their ability. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, I realize that the time of this conference is very precious, and it would not be proper for me, nor do I feel inclined, to occupy more of it, but I am glad to bear this testimony to you this morning. I know as well as I know my own existence that this is the work of God. The Lord has revealed this to me through His holy Spirit. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that he held the keys of this dispensation, and that God revealed Himself to him, in connection with His Son, Jesus Christ. I know that the men who have succeeded him in the presidency of this Church have been men of God and prophets of the Lord. I bear the same testimony concerning President Joseph F. Smith, who now stands at the head of this great work upon the earth. I sustain him as a prophet of the Lord. I sustain his counselors, and the Apostles also, as men of God. I pray for them continually, and ask God to bless and strengthen them to carry the grave responsibilities and burdens which are laid upon their shoulders to the honor and glory of God and the blessing and benefit of His people. May God bless us all, I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶