My Brethren And Sisters President McKay...

My brethren and sisters, President McKay has been kind enough to advise the General Authorities in advance that they might be expected to speak at certain sessions of the conference. My turn was to come next Wednesday. During a half century of active service in the Church, I have never felt so wholly inadequate, so totally dependent on divine guidance as I feel right now. For that guidance I humbly pray. ¶

We sang yesterday, "We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet." This hymn, referred originally to the Prophet Joseph Smith. In a meeting not long ago when President McKay announced that the congregation would sing, "We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet," he said, characteristically, "I wish you would have in mind the Prophet Joseph Smith when you sing today." ¶

I should like to offer a prayer that has been in my heart for years, a prayer which I believe is in the heart of every Latter-day Saint throughout the world. ¶

"We thank thee, O God, for the Prophet, David O. McKay, to guide us in these later-latter days. We thank thee that through thy blessings he has had the vitality, the vigor, and the health to carry the message of the gospel to the four corners of the earth. We thank thee that his influence and his presence have revitalized the Saints wherever he has gone and have given them courage and hope. We thank thee that he more than any man among us, more than any of his predecessors, has carried the inspiration and the message of the gospel to the greatest and to an ever-increasing international audience. We pray that thou wilt bless him continually and spare him to us, that we may enjoy his great leadership for many years to come." ¶

From the bottom of my heart I sustain and support these men, the President of the Church and his Counselors, the President of the Council of the Twelve, and each individual member of that Council, and the Patriarch as prophets, seers, and revelators to the Church. I am grateful for the privilege of meeting with them occasionally. ¶

Some of our friends have said we are inclined to worship the General Authorities. We love them; we listen to their counsel; we thank God for them; but they would not permit us to worship them. If we should be so inclined, they would be the first to rebuke us. They would doubtless say to us what the angel said to John on the Isle of Patmos, when he was about to kneel before him, ¶

See thou do it not: I am thy fellow-servant . . . worship God. (Rev. 19:10.) ¶

But it is our privilege to be guided by their inspired counsel. I pray that God will help us never to lose sight of and ever be grateful for the outstanding leadership in the Church today. ¶

Elder Alma Sonne mentioned Eastertide. This is the season of the year when we know spring is coming, although here in Salt Lake City today it takes a lot of faith to believe it. But it is the season of the year when things are revitalized and renewed, and it is the time of year when Christians everywhere celebrate Easter in commemoration of the resurrection of the Lord. ¶

As I speak of these men and of their leadership, I am reminded of some additional reasons why we should be grateful for the Easter season. Through the restoration of the gospel we have knowledge and assurance regarding the actual resurrection of the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only that he was resurrected from the dead, but also that he ascended into heaven with his glorified body, and he will come again in material form and substance. We are grateful for the comfort and the hope which comes with this assurance. ¶

The revelations concerning the nature and attributes of our Heavenly Father and of his Son, Jesus Christ, are of transcendent importance to all men everywhere. Modern confirmation and elucidation of biblical evidence on this all-important subject began with the first vision in the Sacred Grove in 1820, and it was renewed and continued in that glorious vision in 1832 at Hiram, Ohio, when the Lord declared, ¶

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 Savior. ¶

Great is his wisdom, marvelous are his ways, and the extent of his doings none 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. (D. & C. 76:1-4.) ¶

The restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ came pursuant to prophetic promise and was a necessary sequel to the great apostasy. It was during the apostasy that an attempt was made to harmonize pagan philosophy with Christian truth. This task was undertaken at the behest of non-Christian emperors and resulted in uninspired declarations in which God was defined—or rather denied—by declaring him to be immaterial, incomprehensible, and without body or parts, occupying no part of finite or infinite space, in other words, non-existent. ¶

We thank God for the restoration of the gospel which refutes such doctrine. In their attempt to incorporate Jesus the Christ into their pagan concept of the Godhead, the Roman emperors, through their appointed delegates to various councils, undertook to have him divest himself of his body, that body which came from the tomb when the angel rolled the stone away, that glorified body with which he ascended into heaven before the wondering gaze of his disciples. Obviously this resurrected body, being material, could not become a part of their immaterial God which had no parts. They would have him shed that body and thereby deny everything that Easter stands for; for if he is incomprehensible and immaterial, then he is not a resurrected being; and if he is not a resurrected being, Easter is meaningless. ¶

Again I say let us thank God for the clarification that has come through modern revelation concerning the personal attributes of the three members of the Godhead. ¶

Jesus Christ revealed the Father to us and said, ". . . he that hath seen me hath seen the Father." (John 14:9.) The Son was in his express image. He revealed a compassionate Father, a divine Parent, one in whom were incorporated the attributes of justice, judgment, mercy, and truth. He revealed a God of love, of forgiveness, and understanding. The restored gospel supplants the motives of fear and awe with faith and trust. The beloved disciple tells us, ". . . perfect love casteth out fear." (I John 4:18.) Love as a dominant attribute of God and a saving quality in man is reasserted and emphasized. ¶

The new commandment which Jesus gave was, "That ye love one another even as I have loved you." His love for us is eternal. Nothing can separate us from it. Sin may separate us from him, but his love endures forever. Listen to Paul's testimony: ¶

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, ¶

Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39.) ¶

I should like to speak to these young people who have been singing for us, and to other young people of the Church, for like others who have spoken, my heart is with the youth of Zion. I should like to say to these young people that God is their Father, that the Savior is pleading for and with them to keep clean, clean in their thinking, in their speaking, in their conduct, that he expects them to be worthy of him and of the sacrifice he made for them and for all of us. He is the Good Shepherd who gave his life for the sheep. He evinced the solicitude of the Good Shepherd in his last injunction to Peter, "Feed my sheep." (John 21:16.) ¶

I should like to add another word to the young people. One of the most lethal weapons which the Adversary has devised to destroy the young people of the Church and of the world is to persuade them that if they have made a mistake they are lost, there is no hope. According to that doctrine, if a young person, in a weak moment, becomes guilty of some misdemeanor, he might as well go on to juvenile delinquency and crime and felony because he is lost anyway. So the devil would have them believe and thus lead them down to hell. ¶

Young people, your Father in heaven loves you; he loves you with a love beyond what your earthly parents can know. If you make mistakes—and you will and all of us have—our Heavenly Father stands ready to forgive and to welcome you when you come to yourselves and turn your backs on the husks and your faces toward home. He will embrace you and say, "For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost and is found." (Luke 15:24.) But let no one think he will not have to pay for his folly. The Father could not in justice say to the prodigal what he said to his older son, "All that I have is thine." (Ibid., v. 31.) ¶

Our Father is kind and loving and forgiving, but there is an inexorable law which has not been repealed. It is the law of the harvest. "As ye sow, so shall ye reap." (See Galatians 6:7.) We cannot sow thistles and reap figs, nor plant thorns and harvest grapes. But when we have had enough of thistles and thorns, we may have the grapes and the figs if we are willing to pay the price—and they cost less. While ours is a world governed by rigid and unwavering law, man has free agency, he may choose to obey or disobey the law, but he must of course abide the consequences of his choice. ¶

One other thing to the young folk—sometimes you come to us with problems when you are perplexed and confused and feel that you are inhibited, not free to think or express opinions. When we talk to you of free agency and explain that it refers not only to actions but to thoughts and opinions, you wonder if that is always the case. Some of you have said to us, "But our right to express our own opinions is trammeled or abridged by the authoritative statements of parents, teachers, and others." ¶

Young people, we will protect your freedom to think, to express your thoughts, and to search for truth. We want you to continue that search fearlessly. We promise you will be uninhibited in that search. You should remember, however, that God has given us sources through which we may have some authoritative answers. Not all the answers, no! If we had all the answers, there would be an end to the search. ¶

We must not expect to have all the answers immediately, for God himself in his wisdom has withheld some of them. We believe in continued and continuing revelation, and that means that we believe there are things to be made known which we do not now know. We believe it is a good thing to reserve judgment on problems that are difficult of solution until more light comes. This principle of withholding judgment and waiting for new revelation should apply in all fields of learning. Scientists make rather definite statements at times, but some of us have lived to see them either amend or abandon their findings in the light of newly discovered truth. As long as scientists are still searching and discovering and as long as new revelation is promised, why insist upon final answers now? It is my conviction that new revelation will come when we have learned to live up to the truth we now have. Wisdom counsels patience. ¶

And so, with respect to some things that now seem difficult to understand, we can well afford to wait until we have all the facts, until all the evidence is in. Now do not misunderstand me. There will never come a time when any revelation of truth from God will be in conflict with any other truth revealed from him, whether it comes as direct revelation or as reward for diligent search. If there seems to be conflict, it is because men, fallible men, are unable properly to interpret God's revelations or man's discoveries. ¶

May he help us that we may go forward fearlessly but reverently in our search for truth and have due respect not only for our parents and our teachers, but also for those through whom God has promised his revelations. ¶

By the same token, we should not undertake to state the time nor the order in which the gospel shall be given to any of the races or nations of the earth. We should not attempt to regulate God's program by our little wrist watches nor insist that he be governed by our schedule of events. He has promised the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, and he and only he knows when they are ready for its message and its blessings. When that time comes, I bear you my witness, prophetic witness, if you will, that he will reveal his will to the leaders of the Church concerning all of his people. He has said, ¶

Remember the worth of souls [all souls] is great in the sight of God; ¶

For, behold the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him. ¶

And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance. ¶

And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth! (D. & C. 18:10-13. Italics added.) ¶

Brothers and sisters, I humbly bear my testimony to you that I do know that God is my Father, that Jesus of Nazareth is my Redeemer and my friend. I thank him for the blessed privilege of engaging in the ministry, and I praise his holy name that through his servants he has shown his willingness to use the weakest of us to do some little good in that ministry. ¶

God bless us to recognize him as the Good Shepherd and to go forward with faith, unafraid of the future, and with complete confidence to say with the Psalmist: ¶

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. ¶

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. ¶

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. ¶

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. ¶

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. ¶

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23.) ¶

We pray this may be true for all of us in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶