My brethren and sisters: I am

My brethren and sisters: I am very happy to be permitted to meet with you in this general conference of the Church, and with you to rejoice in the splendid testimonies and the words of truth and inspiration that have fallen from the lips of the general authorities of the Church. I rejoice in the word of the Lord, because in it there is righteousness ; it points to us the way, it suggests to us the course that we ought to pursue. It teaches us that we ought to walk in the path and be directed in the course in which lies salvation in the end. At this moment there are assembled together in the three congregations upon this block possibly more than twenty thousand members of the Church, men and women who have come from all the different parts of the Church, that they might be instructed in the word and will of the Lord, and I earnestly desire that while I shall stand before you for a few moments this afternoon that my time may not be spent in vain, but that the same good spirit which has prompted those who have preceded me in this position, and which has actuated all of the speakers in the general assembly during the past three days, and this morning, may be felt during these few moments. ¶

That the Lord has spoken again from the heavens there can be no question in our minds. That the ¶

angel spoken of by John the Revelator (John 14:6) has come to the earth, and has brought that glorious message, we do not doubt this afternoon. Indeed, our presence here is an evidence of the belief that we have in the fulfilment of that glorious prediction by the Apostle John. And that the Lord appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith is equally evident. And that the gospel has been established upon the earth is true. Possibly the majority of those who are here this afternoon are members of the Church, and to attain that membership it has been necessary for us to believe in God, accepting him and acknowledging him as our spiritual Father, as the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh ; and that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, and that he fulfilled his earthly mission, and that his life was concluded in the sacrifice that he offered for us and for the world. We believe that through the atonement of Christ all men will be saved, through obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. This is specific salvation. There is in the atonement of Christ a general term of salvation. "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." So, as many as shall die and have died through the transgression of Adam, shall be resurrected from the grave by the atonement of Jesus Christ. That will be true of all men, saint and sinner, Jew and Gentile, bond and free. All men will be participants in the benefits of the atonement of Jesus Christ, as far as the resurrection of these bodies is concerned. There is no question about that in my mind. If there is any one fact in scripture that is proved beyond the peradventure of a doubt more than another, it is the fact of the literal resurrection of the bodies of those who have lived. With this belief in the Father and in his Son Jesus Christ, who came into the world that we might live, and our belief in that wonderful influence that comes from the presence of God and fills the immensity of space by which our natural minds and our understandings are quickened, our eyes opened, and our comprehension is enlarged, to which we refer as the Holy Ghost, a personage of spirit, — I say with faith in this, and with faith in the love and mercy of our Father in heaven, and in men whom God has chosen from among their fellows and placed upon them a portion of his honor, giving them authority to officiate in his name and power to act among the children of men in the same manner and with the same effect as though he were present himself and performed these ordinances, we are fit candidates for initiation into his Church. With faith in God, with faith in Jesus Christ his Son, with faith in the mission and operations of the Holy Ghost, and with faith in the men whom God has appointed to preside over us in the holy priesthood, we are then fit candidates for baptism, that baptism by which we are "buried in the water" and come forth out of the watery grave to a newness of life. "Know ye not," the Apostle Paul declares, "that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Wherefore, we are buried with him into death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead, by the glory of the Father, we also should walk in newness of life ; for if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also raised up after the ¶

likeness of his resurrection." Now we have received these glorious ordinances. We have been baptized in the water, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, and we have come forth to a newness of life. I hope, my brethren and sisters, that it is to a newness of life. I hope that we were able to "put off the old man" of sin when we went down into that watery grave. I hope we have been able to live above the traditions of the world, so that when the hands of the elders were placed upon our heads and the Holy Ghost was conferred upon us that we became fit receptacles for the indwelling of that divine influence, that we might then be in that attitude of mind and purity of body that we. would be able to receive the whisperings of that still small voice, and that we would be guided by its promptings, directed by its influence, and strengthened by its power. And if we have thus lived, and if today we sit in this congregation as men and women thus favored of the Lord our God, then happy are we. But I am sorry, my brethren and sisters, to admit in your hearing this afternoon, that there are many of the Latter-day Saints who believe in the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, in the restoration of the gospel in the day and age in which we live, who went forth into the waters of baptism and received the "laying on of hands of the presbytery" and who, soon after, sat down on the banks of the stream, and failed to grasp the situation and the opportunities around about. They failed to live their religion, failed to comply with the requirements made upon them, failed to grow with the growth of the Church and today they find themselves far ¶

in the rear of the advanced condition of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So these conferences are called, these assemblies gather together from time to time, in order that our ears may be opened to the voice of the Lord as it comes to us through his divinely appointed servants, and if we are wise and desire, in a night not very far distant, to have oil in our lamps and to have those lamps trimmed and burning, we will receive the word with gladness, and we will put it into practice in our lives. We will be guided by it in these days of trouble and trial and evil in the world, and we will live near unto the Lord, so that when these troubles become more grievous, and perhaps more close to us than they have been in the past two and a half years, that our feet will be found standing in holy places, that we will have God for our friend, that we will have taken the Holy Spirit for our guide, that we will henceforth be able to stand amid the whirl of doubt and the fear of nations, having our trust planted in the God of Israel, realizing and remembering the promises that Jehovah made while he was here in his personal ministry, and which he has made through his spoken word to the Prophet Joseph Smith. If we are able to read, we will read the signs of the times, as Daniel read the handwriting on Belshazzar's wall and understood in a moment what it meant. ¶

I believe every Latter-day Saint ought today to be standing in such a holy place, and living such a holy life, that he or she will be able to discern the signs of the times. We may not be able to tell, as was stated this morning, within any certain number of months or years, the ¶

time of the second advent of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; but we will know this, that when the fig tree is putting forth its leaves summer is nigh, and that the warm weather will soon come upon us. We may know just as assuredly that we are living in a time near the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, if we are able to read the signs of the times. I do not know how many of you have read recently the 24th chapter of Matthew, and have considered the words of the Lord Jesus, uttered prior to his crucifixion, with reference to these very times in which we are living. If you remember, he refers the people to the prophecy of Daniel of old, with reference to the destruction of Jerusalem and with reference to the days and times in which we are living and his second coming. You remember he makes the statement that when these tribulations and destruction, referred to by Daniel, shall appear among the peoples of the earth, then is time for us to be putting our feet in holy places. I want to say in passing that those who have attended the sessions of this conference have endeavored, and to this extent have manifested the disposition to be in a holy place during this time, and I congratulate you for it, my brethren and sisters. You are doing well. ¶

If in your lives, during the coming six months, or the coming year, or years, you will continue to stand, not only in this holy house, or in all the holy houses that God has appointed for us to meet in, it will be well with you. When I look over the reports, I find that only an average of from 16 to 20 per cent of the membership of this Church attend their sacramental meetings on Sunday afternoon, I am constrained to believe that some if not many of the Latter-day Saints have not decided to stand in holy places on the Sabbath afternoon, and I think that the words of Paul are finding some application in the lives of the Latter-day Saints, in which he said, speaking to his favorite son, Timothy, that in the latter-days, those in which we are living, "perilous times shall come, for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasure' more than lovers of God." I am afraid that sometimes this spirit of evil is entering in among the Latter-day Saints, in that we would rather be somewhere else on the Sabbath day, when our feet should rest in some holy place, during the two hours of our sacramental meeting. ¶

The same is true of the priesthood. Twenty-six per cent on an average of those who hold the priesthood attend the ward priesthood meetings. It is not very creditable to us, as members of the Church, is it? Every blessing that we enjoy, or that is to be enjoyed in the Church, either in time or in eternity, must come to us through this holy priesthood. When we forget this, we forget our duty to God, and to ourselves, and also to the priesthood. We are told in the 29th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, that those who have not this priesthood in the world to come will have no power of salvation; that those who are cast off into the outside, where there shall be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth and eternal darkness, will not be ¶

able to come out of that place because they have no power. Now, you brethren who hold the power of the priesthood, and that means the power of salvation by ' which you can lift yourselves above the groveling events of this earth, and be exalted, heirs to the kingdom of God. Therefore, let us honor this priesthood ; let us do our duty, and comply with all the requirements made of us, and God will honor us both here and hereafter. ¶

Needless to say we are living in troublous times, when that phial of wrath has been poured out upon the land and upon the sea, when the hand of destruction is falling upon those who dwell upon the earth, upon the land and upon the sea. I think so, and it will increase until the consummation of all things and the dawn of the millennium have come to us. We need not be surprised at these things. They are coming. Our sons may have to go to the front. They may have to enlist and go out and face the enemy, the enemy of our country, because I want to say to you, my brethren and sisters, that God has given this land to be the home of the free, and this country will ever be a free nation. I do not consider that the time will ever come that any foreign king will ever be permitted to rule upon this land, because the decree and purposes of God are all opposed to that. But there will come a time — there is coming a time, when the good people of this nation, just as far as their wickedness extends, will be scourged by the hand of the scourger until they have opened their eyes and understood the purposes of God. ¶

Let me say, in closing, that in the midst of this time let us be sure that ¶

we keep in mind the purposes of our lives. Some men may love to conquer as they have done in the past, and we know we hope to conquer. I want to say to you for the comfort of those mothers and fathers of sons that may have to go into the war, that we shall and must conquer in the power of Israel's God. The history of the past shows us very plainly that very few men, without the power of God resting upon them, have been able to conquer, and that principle suggests the truth today as it ever was. There are a great many things besides fighting for us to do. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints is an organization of peace and an organization of uplift. Not very many days ago, in the section in which I live and in the stake over which I have the honor to preside, there came into our district representatives of the Canadian government, soliciting our young men, our sons and our fathers, to leave their homes and go over into Canada, in order that the soil of Canada might be tilled and crops produced. Their young men had gone to the war, their communities had been deprived of men who had been engaged in commerce and labor, and therefore it became necessary for them to send representatives into the various states of this nation in order to employ boys to till the soil for them. Perhaps many of our boys will rush headlong into the ranks, so that little means will be left for help in tilling the soil. I live in an agricultural district, and I consider very strongly that an important duty is to the soil, to the raising of crops in order that the people, even those who are engaged in the conflicts of war may be provided with the necessaries of life. There will be plenty to go to the front; and yet, all should be ready to go, if required. Though I am past the age myself, yet I feel, if the time comes and necessity calls for it, and my other necessities will spare me — because I have other duties that I cannot very well forego — if I can be spared from those other callings and wants, I will be glad to do all I can. Yet I must recognize that these other things devolve upon me. ¶

Our loyalty need not be questioned, because God knows there are no people in the United States in whose veins flows more loyal blood than in the veins of the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Well, let us be true to ourselves, my brethren and sisters; let us be true to the Church that has given us such a glorious heritage. Let us be true to God who has made it possible for us to occupy these peaceful valleys of the mountains, that we may live out in perfection the life that God has given us, so that when we shall pass away from this earth there shall await us the glorious reward of salvation in the kingdom of our God, I humbly ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶

Elder Melvin J. Ballard sang a solo : "I'll go where You want me to go, dear Lord." ¶