Commandments Given for the Benefit of the Church

ing in God, shall have everything made up to them. They are heirs of the promises; they shall inherit the promises. I do not know in what way God will provide the means by which these splendid men shall reach the celestial kingdom and experience all the promises fulfilled in their lives, but I have firm faith in the Lord, for his words are true; and sometime, somewhere, the power and the glory of God shall rest upon them; for the Creator will finish what he has begun. ¶

The Prophet Joseph told a weeping mother, who had lost her baby in death, that in the resurrection she would have the privilege of rearing that baby up to its full stature, and have more joy in doing that than she could have had in mortality. ¶

An eminent divine, nationally known, said the other day: ¶

But my friends, I could not stand in this radio pulpit, if I did not believe that the good God takes these unfinished lives, with their unfinished work, and somewhere, somehow, in his house of many mansions, gives them the glory of going on. A just and loving Heavenly Father will keep faith with those who keep faith with him. ¶

Thus the glorious light of heaven is spreading. Heaven's morning, with the joy and knowledge of hope and progression beyond the grave, is breaking in upon the lives of, men. The notion that in this life only we have hope in Christ, we do not accept, for "if in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." ¶

Our grief, by the power of God, the Author and the Finisher of our faith, is lifted from earth to heaven, and the tears are wiped away by a loving God. Glory, majesty, and power be unto Jesus Christ, the resurrection and the life, the Author and the Finisher of our faith, forever and forever. Amen. ¶

The congregation sang the hymn, "I Need Thee Every Hour," L.D.S. Hymns No. 387, Hymn Book No. 378. ¶

, As I stand here before you, I seek the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord and your help in what I may say. First of all, I wish to express my appreciation for the timely message that came this morning from President Heber J. Grant. May the Lord continue to bless him, I am likewise grateful for the fine testimonies that we have heard so far, and I hope the powerful words spoken by Elder Mark E. Petersen will sink deeply into our hearts. ¶

Commandments Given for the Benefit of the Church

On the second day of January, in the year 1831, the Lord gave a revelation to the Church and in that revelation commanded them to move from the headquarters then established in New York to the Ohio. He gives the reason for it; ¶

And that ye might escape the power of the enemy and be gathered unto me a righteous people, without spot and blameless -- Wherefore, for this cause I gave unto you the commandment that ye should go to the Ohio; and there I will give unto you my law; and there you shall be endowed with power from on high. (Doc. and Cov. 38:31-32.) ¶

In obedience to this commandment the people moved to the Ohio. The law the Lord gave, spoken of here in this promise, is found in Section Forty-two, in large part at least, of the Doctrine and Covenants. In this revelation many things are recorded for our benefit. I am only sorry that we have not always adhered strictly to these commandments. Of course, I cannot mention all of the things recorded in this revelation, for there are many, but I desire to speak of one or two that were given for the benefit of the Church. First of all, let me say that when Adam was driven out of the Garden of Eden, the Lord passed a sentence upon him. Some people have looked upon that sentence as being a dreadful thing. It was not; it was a blessing. I don't know that it can truthfully be considered even as a punishment in disguise. The Lord said to him: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread," and all down through the ages the Lord has called upon his people to be diligent, to serve him in faithfulness, to work. And here in verses forty to forty-two in this revelation I read : ¶

And again, thou shalt not be proud in thy heart; let all thy garments be plain, and their beauty the beauty of the work of thine own hands; And let all things be done in cleanliness before me. Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer. (Doc. and Cov. 42:40-42.) ¶

And to this I wish to speak. ¶

The Saints Admonished to Produce What They Needed

In the early days of the Church in these valleys, great stress was placed upon industry by President Brigham Young and the other brethren, and it was necessary because our forefathers came here with nothing. They had to work. They had to be industrious. It was essential that they produce the things they needed, and therefore counsel to that extent and in that direction was given to them constantly that they should be industrious. They were taught not to be proud in their hearts. They came out here where they could worship the Lord their God and keep his commandments. They were told to be humble as well as to be diligent. They were to make their own garments, and they were to be plain. Oh, I wish we could remember that. I am sorry that we have forgotten. And President Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, and others of the brethren in those early days taught the people and prevailed upon them to start industries throughout this country, to raise sheep, to gather the wool, to make their own clothes out of that wool, to plant cotton that they might have cotton also to make clothing, to plant flax that they might get linen, to build tanneries that they might tan the hides and make themselves leather, ¶

and a thousand other things. We used to have some of these industries here among us, and would still have them if we had been willing to adhere to these counsels that had been given to us in those early days by the authorities of the Church, which we would not do. I used to wear suits that were made at Provo, in the woolen mills. I did that as long as I could get them. The suit I have on now was not made at Provo, nor was it made in Utah -- that is the cloth -- but the tailor made it here. Last week at a stake conference, I made the statement that I did not believe there was in that building an individual born in this country who knew how to make a suit of clothes. If there was one there, would he please make himself manifest, and nobody made himself manifest. Then I said, "If there's a cobbler in this room, he was not born in this country. If there is a cobbler here, let him stand up." Nobody stood. There was no cobbler. And so we might go on. ¶

Now, the Lord said, "Let all things be done in cleanliness before me." I could spend some time on that, but time will not permit; so I continue, the Lord said, "Thou shalt not be idle for he that is idle shall not eat the bread, nor wear the garments of the laborer." That is good sound sense, isn't it? Why should a man in idleness partake of the industry of the industrious -- provided that this man who is idle, is in a physical condition that he can work? I am not at all in sympathy with any kind of movement that tends to destroy manhood by encouraging men to be idle, and I don't care what age that is. It doesn't matter how old he gets, if a man is physically strong and is able to perform services, he should take care of himself; that the Lord expects him to do. ¶

The Lord said in another revelation: ¶

And again, verily I say unto you, that every man who is obliged to provide for his own family, let him provide, and he shall in nowise lose his crown; and let him labor in the Church. Let every man be diligent in all things. And the idler shall not have place in the Church, except he repent and mend his ways. (Doc. and Cov. 75:28, 29.) ¶

So that is the counsel the Lord has given the Church today. And this is not merely to be applied to plowing fields, or to reaping and harvesting and engaging in industry, but it means likewise that a man should be industrious in spiritual things as well as in the temporalities by which he makes his living. ¶

Again, here is another commandment the Lord gave: ¶

And the inhabitants of Zion also shall remember their labors, inasmuch as they are appointed to labor, in all faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord. Now, I, the Lord, am not well pleased with the inhabitants of Zion, for there are idlers among them; and their children are also growing up in wickedness; they also seek not earnestly the riches of eternity, but their eyes are full of greediness. (Doc. and Cov. 68:30, 31.) ¶

If the Lord were speaking to us today, I wonder if he would not put even more emphasis upon this commandment. ¶

And again, the Lord said of his servants who preach the gospel: ¶

... I give unto them a commandment, thus: Thou shalt not idle away thy time, neither shalt thou bury thy talent that it may not be known. (Doc. and Cov. 60:13.) ¶

And that means whatever that talent may be, the man should not bury it. If he is a mechanic, if he is skilled in some other direction, if he has the power and ability to preach the gospel, whatever it is, the Lord expects him to use that talent in His service. ¶

Advice from Leaders of the Church

Let me present a statement here from President Joseph F. Smith : ¶

There should be no idlers in Zion. Even the poor who have to be assisted should be willing to do all in their power to earn their own living. Not one man or woman should be content to sit down and be fed, clothed, or housed without an exertion on his or her part to compensate for these privileges. All men and women should feel a degree of independence of character that would stimulate them to do something for a living and not be idle; for it is written that the idler shall not eat the bread of the laborer in Zion, and he shall not have place among us. Therefore, it is necessary that we should be industrious, that we should intelligently apply our labor to something that is productive and conducive to the welfare of the human family. (Gospel Doctrine, pp. 235, 236.) ¶

And then, President Brigham Young, out of all the many things that he has said, let me present this: ¶

We want you henceforth to be a self-sustaining people. Hear it, O Israel! hear it, neighbors, friends and enemies, this is what the Lord requires of this people.... Ye Latter-day Saints learn to sustain yourselves, produce everything you need to eat, drink or wear; and if you cannot obtain all you wish for today, learn to do without that which you cannot purchase and pay for; and bring your minds into subjection that you must live within your means.... Who are deserving of praise? The persons who take care of themselves or the ones who always trust in the great mercies of the Lord to take care of them? It is just as consistent to expect that the Lord will supply us with fruit when we do not plant the trees; or that when we do not plow and sow and are saved the labor of harvesting, we should cry to the Lord to save us from want, -as to ask him to save us from the consequences of our own folly, disobedience and waste.... ¶

Brethren, learn. You have learned a good deal, it is true, but learn more; learn to sustain yourselves; lay up grain and flour and save it against a day of scarcity. Sisters, do not ask your husbands to sell the last bushel of grain you have to buy something for you out of the stores, but aid your husbands in storing it up against a day of want, and always have a year's or two, provision on hand. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 293.) ¶

I hope the time will come when we will not feel restricted and will be able to lay up in store for a year or two in advance. The Lord bless you, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶