Much Has Been Said This Morning Regarding...

Much has been said this morning regarding the Spirit, and I feel that we have felt the Spirit of the Lord here this morning. In order to feel the Spirit of the Lord we must understand God; he must be known to us, and not unknown. ¶

I should like to draw from Holy Writ two experiences, one in the life of the Apostle Paul on Mars' hill and the other in the life of Moses. ¶

You will recall that when Paul visited Mars' hill he said: ¶

For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. (Acts 17:23.) The following experience in the life of Moses is recorded in Exodus 32:1-8. ¶

Moses delayed in coming down from the mount. The children of Israel became restless and said unto Aaron, "Make us gods which shall go before us; this Moses, we know not where he is." So Aaron persuaded them to bring their jewelry, and he fashioned it with a graving tool and made a molten calf. ¶

"These be thy Godsl" And so Aaron built an altar and proclaimed, "We feast, drink and play." ¶

Then the Lord said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: ¶

They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: [they have made them a "golden calf."] (Exodus 32:78.) From both these experiences — the prophet Moses, and the Apostle Paul on Mars' hill — we learn these lessons: ¶

The people had their devotions, built altars, worshiped an unknown God, and worshiped in ignorance. In each case, as today, authorized servants taught the true and living God. ¶

We have heard this morning about the spiritual and the carnal. May I say that the golden calf is the carnal or the carnal may be likened unto the worship of the golden calf, or the material things of life — feasting, drinking, and playing, and forgetting the spirit? ¶

It is essential to know God and to worship him in truth, for Jesus said: ¶

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. (John 17:3.) We cannot serve both God and mammon. It is necessary to know to whom we pray and to pay our devotions so that such may be done in spirit and in truth. We have heard the mouthpiece of our Heavenly Father, President David O. McKay, this morning from this pulpit draw conclusively to our attention the need to develop the spirit within us, to understand God, and then to have these things apply in our lives. ¶

The Apostle Paul further declared: ¶

Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. (Acts 17:29.) We can be influenced by man's device today which is contrary to enjoying the spirit; ". . . for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." (II Cor. 3:6.) Are we worshiping God in the full spirit of truth or are there any golden calves or idols in our lives? Do we on occasion worship the gods of hate, bitterness, vanity, deceit, profanity, dishonesty, disloyalty, immorality, apostasy, money, gold, silver, uranium (to bring us up-to-date), power, clothes, passions, styles, a broken Sabbath, new cars with higher speed, in fact, all material things? ¶

The New Testament poses a very important question: ¶

Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? (Matt. 6:25.) It is easy to follow the world and think in a material or physical vein. I am reminded of an experience which happened as we toured the Western States Mission four years ago with President and Sister A. Lewis Elggren. ¶

As we journeyed through the state of Nebraska, we saw road signs, "Do not fail to see the Pioneer Village and the Progress of Man." As I am always interested in the pioneers and the progress of man, I was anxious to see what progress man had made. When we finally arrived, we found, a new, very modern building. In it were the various styles of automobiles, beginning with one of the first ones produced up to and including the new high-powered, streamlined, most modern car. And this was supposed to represent the progress of man! Yes, it is easy to follow the world and think of the material, the carnal, rather than the spiritual. ¶

Do we worship these carnal or material things in preference to the spiritual? ¶

We do need a balance. We may prefer to worship the movies, movie stars, television, radio, and all forms of recreation. Do these things take us from our quorum meetings, Sunday School, and Sacrament meetings? If so, these are just some of the modern golden calves which can come into our lives, and we worship them in preference to developing our spiritual lives. ¶

In the days of Moses the children of Israel merely gave material things to make their golden calf. Today we are giving our precious time. Material things can be replaced, but time cannot be called back, and time is allotted to each of us on an equal basis — twentyfour golden hours each day. ¶

What are we doing with them? Are we using them to the best advantage? ¶

Now is the time to do something about it! We all no doubt have approached a railroad crossing and have been exposed to the sign which reads, "Stop! Look! Listen!" ¶

May we sincerely take this to heart. ¶

What if Paul should pass by today as he passed Mars' hill? What if Jesus should appear today (and no man knoweth the hour of his coming)? Are we as ready to meet him as we can be? ¶

I trust we will banish from our lives any worship of golden calves, and worship our Father in spirit and in truth. ¶

It is my privilege to know many young couples on the campuses of the universities in this and other areas who are getting their education and at the same time having their babies, raising their families, and finding time to serve the true and living God. I thrill at their devotion. ¶

Then I think of the couple who went to the bank and placed a mortgage on their home in order to finance their sixth son on his mission. They wanted all their sons to have this privilege and honor. They had a witness of the true and living God and were worshiping him and assisting in this great work. ¶

As I toured the Southwest Indian Mission last fall, I met a Lamanite brother. ¶

I learned he was eighty-four years of age. A few years ago in this little branch where he lived, there were but a few members of the Church. Several times when he went to priesthood meeting, he was the only one present, but he didn't leave; he would sing a hymn and pray. His witness had come to him through worship of the true and living God. ¶

Then I think of the parents who are humbly proud of their sons and daughters receiving all the awards and achievements possible through constant Church activity and participation. These are the homes where joy and happiness prevail because they are worshiping the true and living God. This is the type of home President McKay has spoken of this morning. ¶

Now as to idols, they were prevalent in the days of Moses, of Paul, and are among us today. Paul's words to the Thessalonian saints, First Thessalonians, the first chapter and the ninth verse — ". . . and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God," ¶

would indicate that they had seen the error of their ways and had turned to the worship of God. ¶

So if there need be repentance in any of our hearts today, let us exercise the courage and fortitude necessary to turn from our idols to worship and serve the true and living God. If anyone within the sound of my voice has not yet been blessed with membership in the true Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I pray that the Spirit of the Lord will prevail upon him to receive the witness that the words spoken from this pulpit are divine and for the benefit of our spiritual and eternal lives. ¶

It is our individual responsibility to see that our spiritual lives are in tune with the teachings of the Master, who said, ". . . seek ye first the kingdom of God, ..." I testify to you that the material and physical things which we need to sustain life will be granted us. ¶

I testify further that God is our Heavenly Father. He is not a mystery but can be known if we desire to know him. ¶

This is my witness and testimony to you, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶