My Brothers And Sisters These Are Momentous...

My brothers and sisters, these are momentous days. The experiences of this week we will not soon forget. I am impressed, too, as Brother Cowley expressed, with the importance of the body to which I belong. This is the first general conference I have ever attended which was conducted by the Council of the Twelve. ¶

Statement of Paul

I am reminded of the statement by Paul to the Ephesians when he said: ¶

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists and some, pastors and teachers. ¶

And then he outlines carefully for what purpose they were called: ¶

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body (the Church) of Christ. ¶

And then he goes further and makes a statement that I think is very important indeed to every Latter-day Saint: ¶

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive. (Ephesians 4:11-12, 14.) ¶

Chosen Leaders

In many other places Paul also warned us against the deceivers who would come even before his departing. And they have continued to come, and they are among us today. The authorities which the Lord has placed in his Church constitute for the people of the Church a harbor, a place of refuge, a hitching post, as it were. ¶

No one in this Church will ever go far astray who ties himself securely to the Church Authorities whom the Lord has placed in his Church. This Church will never go astray; the Quorum of the Twelve will never lead you into bypaths; it never has and never will. ¶

There could be individuals who would falter; there will never be a majority of the Council of the Twelve on the wrong side at any time. ¶

The Lord has chosen them; he has given them specific responsibilities. And those people who stand close to them will be safe. And, conversely, whenever one begins to go his own way in opposition to authority, he is in grave danger. I would not say that those leaders whom the Lord chooses are necessarily the most brilliant, nor the most highly trained, but they are the chosen, and when chosen of the Lord they are his recognized authority, and the people who stay close to them have safety. ¶

I am reminded of when Moses was called to his tremendous responsibility of leading the children of Israel out of bondage, and he complained to the Lord and said, "I am weak, I am slow of speech," ¶

and the Lord gave to him a voice in his brother Aaron. But the Lord didn't replace him by that voice. ¶

Need of Being Valiant

The Lord is at the helm, brothers and sisters, and he will continue to be there, and his work will go forward. The important question is whether we, as individuals, will be going in that same direction. It's up to us. This is a gospel of individual work. I wish our Latter-day Saints could become more valiant. As I read the seventy-sixth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the great vision given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, I remember that the Lord says to that terrestrial degree of glory may go those who are not valiant in the testimony, which means that many of us who have received baptism by proper authority, many who have received other ordinances, even temple blessings, will not reach the celestial kingdom of glory unless we live the commandments and are valiant. ¶

What is being valiant? I believe that John, in the book of Revelation, says something about valiancy. He is speaking to the people at Sardis, one of the cities which Paul had proselyted. He is speaking to the Saints, mind you, not to the people in the world. ¶

He says: "I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead." (Rev. 3:1.) ¶

Spiritually Dead

There are many people in this Church today who think they live, but they are dead to the spiritual things. And I believe even many who are making pretenses of being active are also spiritually dead. Their service is much of the letter and less of the spirit. ¶

Again I notice he speaks to another group, the Laodiceans, and says: ¶

I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. ¶

So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. (Ibid., 3:15-16.) Those were Saints who had been baptized into the kingdom, received the Holy Ghost, we would assume, and were supposed to be on their way to exaltation. But they weren't faithful, they weren't valiant. The Lord says again in these verses through John: ¶

Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. (Ibid. 3:12.) He says again of these Sardis members of the Church: ¶

Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. ¶

He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. (Ibid., 3:4-5.) I remember a great people of long ago who belonged to the Church of our Lord, who became so righteous as a group that they were translated into heaven. And I wonder why other groups have not been taken. The only conclusion that I can reach is that whole groups have not been sufficiently righteous. We buried a righteous man yesterday. If all of the people in this Church were as righteous as he was, perhaps there might be further translations. But we are not living the commandments of the Lord as well as we know. ¶

Many of us are not valiant. ¶

Greater Church Activity

I pray the Lord will bless us all, that we may catch a vision of greater activity in this Church, all of us. That none of us may stand by and feel self-righteous as did the hypocrite who with the publican went to the temple to pray: ¶

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. ¶

I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. (Luke 18:11-12.) Then Jesus goes on to say: ¶

And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. ¶

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Ibid., 18:1344.) We are all sinners. We all need to repent. We all need to change our lives and to make them more righteous, and become valiant as the children of Enoch were valiant, so that we may receive the blessings which are promised to us and which we are striving for. ¶

Many of us have not yet surrendered, or if it has been a surrender it has been a conditional surrender, with many reservations. ¶

God help us, brothers and sisters, that we may unconditionally surrender to the Lord and his program and to the spirit of the work, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶