My Brethren And Sisters, Notwithstanding There Are Many...

My brethren and sisters, notwithstanding there are many attractions in Salt Lake City to engage the attention of the people, there is still a very large gathering in this tabernacle this morning. I greatly rejoiced in the spirit and teachings of the conference yesterday. I trust that the Lord will continue to be with us today, by the influence and power of his holy Spirit, that it may be a time of rejoicing and thanksgiving. ¶

A PERPLEXING QUESTION ¶

I am reading in part from one of the daily papers, a message wired from Glasgow, Scotland, September 10, 1928: ¶

"The great mystery of the origin, nature and purpose of life, always will remain to tease, stimulate or humiliate mankind. Professor C. Lovatt Evans told the physiology section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science today. ¶

"Professor Evans is a fellow of the Royal Society, a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, a doctor of science and one of the best known physiologists in the world. His remarks were made in the course of the presidential address for physiology section of the science association. * * * ¶

" 'Matter, energy, time and space are in the melting pot,' he said, 'and out of it will come, we know not what kind of strange relations, one to another. One thing we may be sure, no final explanation will follow'." ¶

The position taken by this learned professor is extraordinary. He assumes that man will never come to know the purpose of life. And if that be true, I take it that there would be very little or no satisfaction in living. Man is fearfully and wonderfully made. He is the marvel of creation, he is the noblest work of God. Nevertheless, Professor Evans, by the study of man, could never ascertain the purpose of life. ¶

THE AUTHOR OF LIFE ¶

If this mystery is to be solved at all, it would be well for Professor Evans and all others interested in the subject to go back of man, back to the beginning, and there become acquainted with the Author of life. Who is the Author of life? I take it that this is a pertinent question. The answer is, God, the Father, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. He is the Author of life. That such knowledge is vital to the consideration of the subject before us, is made clear by the following scripture, a saying by Paul the Apostle: ¶

"This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." ¶

How shall we come to know him, that he may reveal to us the purpose of life? We can only know him by rendering obedience to the Gospel, the plan of life and salvation which he has given, and through such knowledge by obtaining the Spirit of God. This is clearly indicated in the following passages of scripture: ¶

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. ¶

"But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit ; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. ¶

"For what man knoweth the things of man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. ¶

"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God ; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God." (1 Cor. 2:9-12.) ¶

Having progressed sufficiently to get possession of the Spirit of God, our minds will be illuminated so that we can comprehend the things of God. ¶

WHAT IS MAN? ¶

The scriptures teach us that mankind are the children of God, or in other words, that God is the father of our spirits, while our earthly parents are the fathers and mothers of our bodies. If this be true — and it is true — it follows that there was a great family of spirits in the spirit world, God himself being at the head of said family. The earth was created then that these spirits might come down and get bodies. This is clearly and beautifully set forth by the following quotation from the 2nd Chapter of Genesis: ¶

"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life ; and man became a living soul." ¶

What was the breath of life here referred to? Why, it was the man's spirit that God put into his body. He never was a living soul prior to that first great creative act, but now that he has a body combined with a spirit, it constitutes him a living soul. We begin to see something of the purpose of life. The spirits of men and women came down to the earth to get bodies, and I take it, my brethren and sisters, that this was indeed a great and glorious privilege. ¶

THE PURPOSE OF LIFE ¶

Man stands upon the threshold of life. The question might well be asked : Following his birth, what is the purpose of it all ? ¶

The following significant language will be found in the Book of Mormon, a record of sacred scripture : ¶

"Adam fell that man might be and man is that he might have joy." (Book of Mormon, page 54, paragraph 25.) ¶

Men are here upon the earth then that they might have joy. Is there anything more desirable than happiness or joy? We are all seeking it; we all want it. How is it to be obtained? It can only be obtained through the Church and Kingdom of God. How may one get into this Church and Kingdom of God ? The answer is : he must be born into it. He was born into the world to begin with, and now if he comes into the kingdom of God he must be born into it. ¶

Christ said to Nicodemus upon one occasion: ¶

"Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. "Except a man be born of water and of the spirit he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God." (John 3 :3, 4, 5.) ¶

So that it becomes in a sense a real birth. Baptism by water and the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost is the door that leads into the Church and Kingdom of God. ¶

MARRIAGE FOR ETERNITY ¶

It might be said of man that after coming into the Church and Kingdom of God the purpose of life could not be fully realized without marriage — marriage for time and eternity. In the beginning, when man was formed from the dust of the earth and became a living soul, he was alone. God said: "It is not good for man to be alone," and he then formed the woman and brought her to the man, and gave her to him in wedlock. Jesus said, speaking of marriage : ¶

"Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together let no man put asunder." (Matt. 19:6.) ¶

A man cannot grow to the full measure of a man without a woman, and conversely a woman cannot grow to the full measure of a woman without a man. They were created together and God intended them to be together in wedlock. ¶

If men and women are to enter into a fulness of joy it must needs be that the family relationship should continue throughout eternity. That it will so continue in the Church and Kingdom of God is the firm belief of the Latter-day Saints. To; be born into the world in the first place, and then to be born again, born into the Kingdom of God, and finally to enter into the eternity of the marriage covenant — these three conditions explain with clearness the very purpose of life. Surely, brethren and sisters, life is worth living. ¶

I testify to you most earnestly that I do know that the work in which we are engaged is the work of God and that this is the Church of Jesus Christ. It is so denominated. It is called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to distinguish it from his Church in the meridian of time. I know that Christ was and is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and the instrument in the hands of God in founding this work, by organizing the Church as he did in 1830. I rejoice in this knowledge. To me it is a glorious testimony, and I am determined, if possible, to hold on to it all the days of my life. ¶

I pray God's choicest blessings upon you my brethren and sisters, the Latter-day Saints, the general authorities of the Church and the local authorities, that this work may go on and be successful. This is my humble prayer and I ask it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶