Rules Governing Membership in Christ's Church

I am sure that all of you who were here this morning rejoiced in the blessings that came to us, and I trust that during the time we are together this afternoon that same sweet spirit may characterize what may be said and done. ¶

I have felt the absence of two of the brethren who were here at our last general conference, and I marvel how quickly we move on, and how soon those who have served us pass from our remembrance. In a few short years others occupy the posts of duty, and this Church that was organized in the year 1830 goes forward year by year. ¶

Rejoices in Growth of Church

"We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in his Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." I am grateful that when the Gospel came in this latter day there were so many who were willing to cast in their lot with that unpopular group. When we think that it is only a little over a hundred years since this Church was organized, and that notwithstanding the opposition of evil throughout the world, it has continued to grow until today it is stronger and more potent for blessing mankind than it has ever been, we have cause for rejoicing. ¶

It is my privilege to travel much in the world. Many of my associates are men of other faiths or men who have no faith, and I rejoice in observing how tolerant and how considerate many of these people are when I realize that only a few years ago it was almost impossible for us to obtain a hearing in the larger centers of the world. ¶

The Lord's Work

But this is the Lord's work. It was his beloved Son who came and directed the organization of this Church. That was not done ¶

because there were not other churches; it was not necessary because there were not people worshiping God; but it was necessary in order that the scriptures might be fulfilled and in order that the Church of Jesus Christ might be again established. When I say that, it is not with any unkindness toward any other faith or creed. I realize that each of us must live his or her individual life, and when we think of the wonderful people there are throughout the world who do not know about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who have no conceptions of the teachings of our Lord as revealed again in this latter day, and as we see so many of them that are anxious to know what to do, I realize how important and serious our problem is. ¶

You brethren who are sitting here today have had conferred upon you a sacred opportunity, a sacred trust. You have received the blessings of the holy Priesthood. Divine authority has been conferred upon you, and with that authority there has come the responsibility of raising your voice and living your life so that the people of the world may know the difference between the Gospel of Jesus Christ and other organizations of the world. ¶

All Have Equal Opportunities for Exaltation

I find as I travel about that people are astonished when they discover that men of this Church who attain prominence, men who have been exalted in political and business life, retain their faith. I had a man ask me sometime ago : "How is it that people can remain faithful in your Church and still have all of these advantages that come in the world?" He said: "In our church this is not the case. When men become prominent in civil life or in business life in most cases we lose their cooperation." ¶

I thought today as I sat here looking at this group of men and women who have had unusual opportunities for education, refinement, and culture, opportunities to serve in various capacities, that when we meet as we have met today we are brethren and sisters, we have the spirit of the Gospel, we have affection for one another, and we meet under that influence that our Heavenly Father said should exist if we love our neighbors as ourselves. ¶

One of the beautiful things to me in the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that it brings us all to a common level. It is not necessary for a man to be a president of a stake, or a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, in order to attain a high place in the celestial kingdom. The humblest member of the Church, if he keeps the commandments of God, will obtain an exaltation just as much as any other man in the celestial kingdom. The beauty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that it makes us all equal in as far as we keep the commandments of the Lord. In as far as we observe to keep the laws of the Church we have equal opportunities for exaltation. As we develop faith and righteousness our light is made to shine as a guide and blessing to those with whom we mingle. ¶

SHOULD PRAY FOR NATION^ LEADERS ¶

Today the world is confused. There never has been a time within my memory when there was so much uncertainty as to what we should do. Reference has been made to the President of the United States, that he is the leader of this nation ; and I am sure that as members of this Church we ought to pray for the President of the United States. We ought to ask the Lord to inspire and bless him. iWe ought to pray for those who associate with him. We ought to be what the Lord would have us be — real helpers in a great nation such as the one in which we live. ¶

Rules Governing Membership in Christ's Church

Our Heavenly Father has revealed to us what his purposes are toward the children of men. We are expected to have faith, we are expected to repent of our sins, we are expected to receive baptism of the water and of the Holy Ghost. The Lord himself has prescribed the rules that govern membership in this his Church. And when I say his Church, it is not with any discriminating feeling against any other church, because I realize that when all the good men and women in all the church organizations of the world — and there are millions of them — when they live up to all the light that they now possess, and have added to that the light and information that God has revealed in this latter day, they too will be glad to cast in their lot with us — not because we are better men or better women than they, but because they will desire to walk in the footsteps of the Master and desire to walk according to the pattern he has given us, and follow the admonition he has given the children of men. ¶

Change in Attitude Toward Religion

I rejoice in my companionship with men and women in the world as I go to and fro — I meet many marvelous characters — and I am happy to observe in the last few years quite a change in their attitude toward religion. Some of them seem to have been non-religious in many respects, but the conditions in the last few years have changed their attitude and today they are glad to sit down and converse about the principles of the Gospel and learn what it is that the Latter-day Saints seem to have that they do not possess. I feel it is only a question of time, if we do our part, until most of our Father's children who are in the world and do not now understand, will learn of the truth and will be glad to be identified with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ¶

The Church All-Comprehensive

In order to do that they will not have to give up any good thing they have learned in the Methodist Church, they will not have to surrender anything that is good that they have learned in the Catholic Church, they will not have to give away or lose sight of any blessing that has come to them from any quarter in order to belong to the ¶

Church of Jesus Christ. That is the beauty of this work. To me it is all-comprehensive; when it comes to that which is good there is not a virtue, there is not a desirable attribute that a human being may attain to that he is not able to enjoy to its fullest extent as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ¶

Must Leaven the Lump

And so today, while we assemble here comparatively a little handful of our Father's children among the great multitude of the world, yet we are the leaven that must leaven the whole lump, and unless we keep the commandments of God we will not succeed. If the salt should lose its savor, how shall the great multitude of this earth be salted? It is your privilege, my brethren and sisters, to know these things, and it is our privilege as members of the Church to do our full part as the Lord requires at our hands. ¶

Service in the Mission Field

There never has been a time for years when there were so few missionaries in the world as there are today, and the world has never needed missionaries more than today. There are men in this audience, and they have relatives and friends and members of their families who could support them, who want to be in the mission field. You would be happier, you would be accomplishing something that would be eternal, you would not be wasting your time seeking for the things that perish if you were serving in the mission field. ¶

Only a few years ago many of my friends were well-to-do, they had the necessities of life, and many of the luxuries, and when it was intimated that they might go into the mission field some of them would say : "I can not leave my business, I can not get along if I go off and leave what I have." But their business has gone off and left them. The things that they thought they could not get along without have disappeared from their control, and many of these very men today would be happy if they could go back ten years, and if they were then called to go into the service of the Lord, they could say: "I will adjust my affairs, I am happy at the opportunity that is offered me to be a minister of life and salvation." ¶

Our ministry is so different in the world. Think of our opportunities and privileges, to be able to sit down in the homes of the honorable men of the world and teach them the Gospel of Jesus Christ ; think what it might mean to sit down with men who do not possess divine authority, and teach them the plan of salvation and explain to them the manner by which they too may enjoy the blessings of divine authority which you enjoy. ¶

Our Duty to Others

I feel that some of us are selfish. We are so glad to enjoy our blessings, we are so happy to be surrounded by the comforts of life and to ha,ve the association of the best men and women that can be found in the world, that we forget our duty to others. How happy we could be if we would strive to be more potent for good in the world by ministering to those who have not yet understood the Gospel of our Lord. ¶

Many of us have passed middle life, many of us are completing our work. The Church needs missionaries in the field. Men who understand the Gospel and who are willing to give their lives for it if need be, and when I say we need missionaries I mean that the world needs them. ¶

There never has been a time when there was a better opportunity for disseminating the truth than now. Never a time when so many homes would make us welcome. Never a time when we could lay up treasures in heaven where moth and rust will not corrupt or thieves break through and steal, better than in the year 1933. Do not let us forget that. ¶

A Great Blessing

I feel that our financial difficulties will prove a great blessing to many of us. We will become more humble, we will draw nearer to our Heavenly Father, we will be more willing to be guided by his influence, we will not feel self-sufficient as some of us have, and in our homes we will know the necessity of uniting at the altar of prayer and invoking the blessing of the Lord upon us. By repenting of our foolishness and reforming our lives we will evidence our desire to be real Latter-day Saints — real sons and daughters of the living God. ¶

Our Opportunities

These are our opportunities, and they will pass from many of us in the not distant future. Some of us will finish our work soon. We do not know when but while the day lasts, while there is yet time, let us set our houses in order and renew our determination to be worthy of a heritage in the celestial kingdom. It is not always the amount of earthly wealth that we acquire that blesses us, but it is the spiritual wealth that is a real benefit to us year after year ; and eternally if we would be happy. We ought to radiate sunshine and make others who are less fortunate than ourselves as happy as possible. ¶

Our Duty to Serve

The Presidency of the Church are burdened with tremendous responsibility. I marvel, sometimes, how they go forward day after day and year after year, carrying their load. Let us relieve them as much as possible by properly caring for our departments. I realize that I am talking to the leadership of the Church today. I know that the majority of the rank and file are not here. A few of them may be listening in. We and they are all children of the same kind Father who loves every one of us, and he will bless us in proportion to the manner in which we serve, not ourselves, but serve our fellows. ¶

We have from time to time conferences with auxiliary organizations, we have our great Priesthood conventions, our annual conferences, our quarterly conferences. The Lord has provided every opportunity for us at home to learn what he would have us do. If any of us fail to understand, it will not be his fault. ¶

Consider the welfare of our brethren and sisters in the world. What of those who are now among the nations of the earth? It has already been intimated by the President of the Church that the gleaning time has come, and that those of us who are willing to go out and help in the gleaning will be those who will receive the blessing. ¶

Great and good men in the world are looking to us. Only today a brother from California said to me that he had been talking with a very prominent man in another church who has been watching the elections in the United States of America, the elections that are being held in the various states. He said to our brother : "If Utah holds her place as she has a' right to hold it, if Utah remains true to the ideals for which she has been standing all these years, it will not be a difficult thing for me to join you, because I know there is something worthwhile there." ¶

So, brethren and sisters, let us not lose our opportunities, let us not sell our birthright for a "mess of pottage." Let us say to the Lord, "We are willing to serve, we are willing to live, we are anxious to be exemplars for thy sons and daughters elsewhere," not that we may be puffed-up in our own conceit, but in order that good men and good women in all the world, whose eyes are now upon Zion as they have never been before, may not be disappointed in us, and that we may glorify the name of our Heavenly Father, that we may magnify his Church, that we may exemplify in our lives the teachings we have had from the beginning, and be worthy to be called his sons and daughters in very deed. ¶

I pray that we who are here today and that those with whom we may come in contact in the not distant future may feel the influence that the Lord is willing to bestow upon us when we serve him and keep his commandments. ¶

Grateful for Blessings

I am grateful for my position among the General Authorities of the Church, one of the humblest of all. I am grateful for their companionship. I know that these men are servants of the Lord, and I know they are seeking to bless mankind. I hope that not any of you who are here will fail to sustain them, not only by your faith and prayers but if they are misrepresented and their attitude misinterpreted, that you may be willing and anxious to defend them, if need be, because there is a time coming when they will need your defense. The Adversary has not forgotten them, and one of the evidences to me of the divinity of the calling of these men is that evil men speak evil of them, and good men and good women speak well of them. ¶

Testimony

I know that this is the work of the Lord, I know that this is the Church of his beloved Son, restored to the earth for the last time. I realize how serious the obligation is that rests upon us, and in bearing my testimony to you today, I do so with the feeling and desire that you may know as I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of the living Lord. This organization effected in 1830 is for the salvation of the human family. It is the work that God intended the world to be benefited and blessed by. He has offered us the privilege of carrying that blessing to others, and that we may do our duty I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶