God moves in a mysterious way

"God moves in a mysterious way, ¶

His wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm." ¶

These words were given to us by an inspired man many years ago, and yet, my brethren and sisters, they are just as vital and just as much in force, and just as true now as they were at .the time they were given. It is a fact, an absolutely positive thing that you can not get away from, that God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform. And in this mysteriousness we do not need to look at things that we can not understand. We do not need to look for the supernatural. We do not need to expect some most marvelous manifestation of the supernatural in our behalf, in order for us to understand, but the mysterious way that God moves in, his wonders to perform, is the way of. nature, is the way of order, is the way of law, is according to the plan which has existed from time out of mind, and unless we are in tune with that, plan, with that scheme, we cannot understand things, and we can not know just what is happening. ¶

It is a strange thing that many of our members are always looking for something absolutely extraordinary. It is another thing that many of our members are here in the Church today because God has granted unto them some remarkable manifestation of his power, but the great thing is that the vast majority of the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are in the Church today because they have a living, vital and' abiding faith in the power of Almighty God. ¶

I trust that those who are within the sound of my voice are members of the Church for this reason, that you have founded your faith, absolutely and completely on that rock that Christ named as the foundation of his Church. I trust that you are ordering your lives, that things are shaping with you, that you are in tune with our Father and his wonderful plan. Has it ever occurred to you that perfect knowledge is what the devil himself possesses? Has it ever occurred to you that many men, who fight against God and his kingdom, know beyond the question of a doubt that the Gospel is true. Has it ever occurred to you that, in this fighting, the one thing that is lacking in their make-up is that very vital thing, faith in Almighty God ? I beg of you to consider this question, weigh it very, very seriously. I have in mind a man right now, whom I met but a few weeks ago, who claims to have had revealed to him the Son of God himself, and yet that man lacks something in his make-up to hold him fast to the Church and to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Something has come between him and the testimony that he had, and instead of being a helper, a supporter of , and a fighter for, the doctrines of Christ, and the missionaries working in ¶

his field he is a hindrance. He is in opposition, out of harmony, and I said to that man: ¶

"Brother, do you know that the devil himself knows absolutely that God lives? Do you know that Oliver Cowdery, who had most wonderful manifestations, so much so that he was called of God directly by prophecy and by revelation, and had given unto him most wonderful visions; do you know that that man lost the Spirit of God through some cause? And I tell you, my brother, right here and right now — and I do it in love and in kindness, and I do it with the desire to see you hold fast to that which you know is true — that unless you order your life, and unless you come in and put your shoulder to the wheel, right now, and support the men who are here working with you in this branch, the fact that you have seen Christ will not matter. The knowledge, the faith, will be taken from you, and you will be left, according to the promise in the Doctrine and Covenants, to kick against the pricks." ¶

Now, we, here, are members, I hope, every one of us, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are all claiming testimonies of the gospel. We are all professing that we know it is true, and yet here we are living in a day and age of reservations, and far too many of us are taking reservations as regards to the principles of the everlasting gospel. I ask you, and ask you to ask yourselves, Do you believe in God and in his Son Jesus Christ? and you will say, Yes, I guess I do. I will ask you if you keep the Word of Wisdom, if you believe that God spoke the truth when he gave that word, and you will hesitate. Now, if you are reserving the right to accept or reject the principles of this gospel, you are on mighty dangerous ground, for when you have one thing you don't believe it is a very simple thing to make it two and three and four, and it becomes a mighty serious thing. Unless you watch yourself, and unless you turn, instead of having faith in God you will be an enemy of him and his kingdom. That is just exactly where we are. The fact that God has blessed us, and given us that knowledge doesn't mean that we can keep it. Marvelous promises, beyond our comprehension, so deep and so unfathomable in their nature that we can not comprehend them, have been made to us, if we will live according to his law and keep his commandments and do the things that he has commanded. ¶

I want to read to you just a few verses from the Doctrine and Covenants, and I want you to ponder over them, think about them, and study them, and I beg of you to make them a part of your lives. If you will do it, out of this study and this application will come the joy that is yours. In 1832 the Father gave to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, a man who fell away, this wonderful promise : ¶

Hear, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth, and rejoice, ye inhabitants thereof, for the Lord is God. and beside him there is no Saviour. ¶

Great is his wisdom, marvelous are his ways, and the extent of his doings none can find out; ¶

His purposes fail not, neither are there any who can stay his hand; ¶

From eternity to eternity he is the same, and his years never fail. ¶

For thus saith the Lord, I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end; ¶

Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory; ¶

And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries, of my kingdom from days of old; and for ages to come will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom, ¶

Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations;' ¶

And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to heaven: and before them the wisdom of the. wise shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent shall come to nought; ¶

For by my spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make known unto them the secrets of my will; yea, even those things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of man. ¶

My brethren and sisters, to me the most glorious promise that we can expect here as mortals on earth is the promise that God gave in that revelation. I declare unto you in humility and in candor that this subject is so vital, so big, so all-embracing, that unless we take hold of it, study it, and make it part of our lives, we are losing the opportunity knocking at our door today, as it knocks at every door. How common it is for us to kneel down and pray to our Father in heaven for blessings we do not deserve. How common it is for us to say, Why, I have never been blessed, when we do not deserve the blessings ; and yet, our heavenly Father has promised, not only promised, has pledged himself, that if we will do our share he will do his. Look into your own minds, your own hearts, your own souls, take your own lives into consideration, are we doing the things that will bring us those blessings. ¶

I can not expect the blessing he has promised on condition of keeping the Word of Wisdom, if I don't keep the Word of Wisdom. I can not expect the Lord to give me the blessing that is predicated upon the payment of tithes, if I don't pay tithes. I can't expect the blessing predicated upon being honest, virtuous, clean, just, honorable, upright and faithful, unless I perform the acts that bring forth those blessings. I declare to you, as a servant of the living God, that it is vital. In this day of skepticism we must know for ourselves absolutely whether the gospel be of God or whether it be of man ; and if we don't know, it is only a matter of time until we will be outside and in the hands of the evil one. ¶

My testimony is that the gospel is true. My testimony is that it is worth while. This morning, when I listened to President Heber J. Grant bear his marvelous testimony, my whole being was thrilled, and I said to myself: Can any man hearing those words not perform to the utmost the work which God has asked him to do? ¶

Brethren and sisters, do not only hear these words ; take them to your hearts, put them into practice, take them into your lives. Who will be blessed by your doing so? Not the other fellow; no, but you yourselves, will be blessed. God help you. Amen. ¶