Brethren It Is Good To Be Here...

Brethren, it is good to be here. When we are in the Church, and members of it, we belong to the body of Christ, and there is no need for us to go outside of it for anything in the world. I think that is just what President Brown has said in more forceful language. ¶

"We have no need to dabble in the things of the world; we have no need to join other organizations, that are antagonistic to or out of harmony with this Church. . . . ¶

"We will serve the Lord! Let the dying world go to its grave if it will. Let the wicked that are being bound in bundles go to the burning if they will not repent, but as for us, we, with all we are and with all we have, should be in this Church in body and in spirit, in every capacity, and there should be no need and no desire on our part to go outside of the strait and narrow way, the only way which leads to the presence of the Eternal Father and to the gift of eternal life. . . . ¶

"We have no need of anything else. ¶

In the troubles that are coming — for the world is menaced now with troubles and strife and division which will bring misery and sorrow and destruction to many souls — let our place be in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the order of the Holy Priesthood, and we have no need to join other orders to take away part of our time, part of our influence, and part of our means and to hinder us from devoting ourselves entirely to the work of the Lord. . . . ¶

"Oh, my brethren and sisters, why waste your time, your talents, your means, your influence in following something that will perish and pass away, when you could devote yourselves to a thing that will stand forever? For this Church and kingdom, to which you belong, will abide and continue in time, in eternity, while endless ages roll along, and you with it will become mightier and more powerful; while the things of this world will pass away and perish, and will not abide in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord our God." ¶

(Pres. Charles W. Penrose, Conference Report, June 1919, pp. 36-37.) In the payment of our tithes and our offerings we have an opportunity to show better than in any other way our devotion to God, our desire to help in the building of his Church and kingdom here upon this earth and to thus testify most emphatically to the truth. ¶

We will become mightier and more powerful in our own right in direct proportion to the service and contribution we make to strengthen the Church. ¶

I further bear witness to the fact that we consider the things of this world of no lasting concern, for we know that they will pass away and perish, and as President Penrose says, "will not abide in nor after the resurrection." The Savior said: ¶

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: ¶

"But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: ¶

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matthew 6:19-21.) In the record we have of Christ's Sermon on the Mount, we, no doubt, come closer to finding the actual teachings of Christ expressed as accurately, if not more accurately, than in any other place in the whole Bible. "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (ibid., 6:21) should be inscribed on our banner as we march forward as an army to call the world to repentance and to teach them faith in God and in his son Jesus Christ and obedience to the principles of light and knowledge and understanding restored to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith in these latter days. ¶

The Savior said: "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." ¶

(Matthew 5:19.) ". . . Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land. And again it is said that: Inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord." (See Alma 9:13.) To the extent that it is my prerogative so to do, I charge all who hold the priesthood in the Church not only to pay their tithing but also to be diligent in preaching the law of tithing to the membership of the Church. We cannot teach effectively that which we do not live, or putting it in other words, our example is far more powerful than our precept. ¶

In 1961 there were added to the Church 88,802 converts baptized in the stakes and foreign missions. This unprecedented growth demands an unprecedented expenditure in the year 1962. We are under obligation to the Lord to make the full program of the Church available to all these converts as near as possible, that they might be fully fellowshiped in the Church. How could the Lord demonstrate to us his desire to have us do our part more forcibly or more effectively than to turn the hearts of the children of men in the world to the eternal truths of the gospel promulgated by our great missionary force of upwards of 11,000 missionaries, scattered in sixtyfour missions in the world? ¶

You will remember two years ago we suggested at our Saturday night priesthood meeting that we might well double the 6,000 full-time missionaries whom we then had in the mission field. We want to commend you brethren on having almost fully satisfied this request. We express to you brethren throughout the Church your right and prerogative to be happy as we are happy, with the results which you have accomplished in your wards and stakes and missions and branches throughout the Church. ¶

There is a definite tendency in the Church to increase the tithes as missionary activity is increased. These are complementary responsibilities. It is axiomatic that the more we do for the Church the greater is our desire and our capacity and capability. ¶

The time when it was necessary to explain the whys and wherefores of tithing, if it ever existed, is long since past. There is planted in the heart of every convert to the Church and to everyone born in the Church into homes where the gospel is lived and taught, a knowledge of the place that the payment of tithes should take in our lives. ¶

Let us go forward and demonstrate to the Lord our ability to take care of as many converts year by year as are touched by his Spirit and thus spiritually converted to the truths of the gospel. ¶

In the 119th section of the Doctrine and Covenants, as you know, the Lord tells us that the purpose of tithing is "For the building of mine house, and for the laying of the foundation of Zion and for the priesthood, and for the debts of the Presidency of my Church." ¶

(D&C 119:2.) I want to take this opportunity of stating to the priesthood of the Church that this is exactly the use to which the entire tithes of the Church are put. ¶

There is no tithepayer upon the earth that need be seriously concerned with what happens to his tithing. The tithes of the Church are distributed for the building of houses of worship, for the building and maintenance of temples, for the maintenance of missions, wards, and stakes, genealogical work, schools, institutes and seminaries, hospitals, care of the needy, the expense and maintenance of the presiding quorums of the priesthood, the housing of the general boards of the auxiliary organizations, and in every other way laying the foundation of Zion. Be it said to the credit of the auxiliary organizations they pretty well take care of all of their own expenses. Those of us who are charged with the responsibility of distributing the tithes and income of the Church pay our own tithes to the Lord in full, as well as make our contributions to fast offerings, building funds, and support missionary work and the auxiliary organizations, etc., financially as well as otherwise, and do so with continually increased enthusiasm and satisfaction. ¶

We know that there are some errors and some mistakes. Where we administer the Lord's work and seek to bring about his purposes on the earth, I can guarantee to the membership of the Church, that there is never a conscious error or mistake made. I cannot conceive of greater security than to have these matters pass through the hands of the committee on the disposition of the tithes, consisting of the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve, and the Presiding Bishopric. The Lord has conferred upon these quorums of the priesthood, the Quorum of The First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve, and the Quorum of the Presiding Bishopric to distribute the tithes and income of the Church, and this they do unanimously, and the Lord adds, ". . . and by mine own voice. . . ." "Verily, thus saith the Lord, the time is now come, that it shall be disposed of by a council, composed of the First Presidency of my Church, and of the bishop and his council, and by my high council; and by mine own voice unto them, saith the Lord. Even so. Amen." (D&C 120.) To this end were the brethren unanimously sustained by the general conference yesterday afternoon. ¶

Brother Talmage in his Articles of Faith wrote: "It is evident, that while no specific penalty for neglect of the law of tithing is recorded, the proper observance of the requirement was regarded as a sacred duty. In the course of the reformation by Hezekiah, the people manifested their repentance by an immediate payment of tithes; and so liberally did they give that a great surplus accumulated, observing which, Hezekiah inquired as to the source of such plenty: 'And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him, and said, Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat, and have left plenty: for the Lord hath blessed his people; and that which is left is this great store.' Nehemiah took care to regulate the procedure in tithe-paying; and both Amos and Malachi admonished the people because of their neglect of this duty. Through the prophet last named, the Lord charged the people with having robbed him; but promised them blessings beyond their capacity to receive if they would return to their allegiance: 'Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: ¶

for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, said the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. . . .' "In the present dispensation the law of tithing has been given a place of great importance, and particular blessings have been promised for its faithful observance. This day has been called by the Lord a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned. In a revelation given through the Prophet Joseph Smith, July 8, 1838, the Lord has explicitly set forth His requirement of the people in this matter." (Articles of Faith, chapter 24, 436-437.) Elder Talmage brings to our attention that once upon a time the main concern of the house of Israel was to have plenty in store to eat. It is stimulating and inspiring to think back on the tremendous change in the lives of the PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY membership of the Church as the Lord has blessed us and raised us up from the former days of dire poverty and distress, when every service the Saints rendered was a tremendous sacrifice compared with the prosperity and the free time we now enjoy to spend as we see fit. ¶

I am sure it can be truthfully said that it entails no serious case of sacrifice for us to do and accomplish all that the Lord would have us do today. ¶

We all know that the Lord has in very deed "opened up the windows of heaven and poured out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive everything the Lord would have it do." (See Malachi 3:10.) The priesthood of the Church must do its part so that even in the days of prosperity we may humble ourselves in our service to the Lord and our fellow men. This is the only insurance we have against permitting our riches to canker our souls, and to have it said of us, "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and my soul is not saved!" (D&C 56:16.) I commend to the priesthood of the Church the reading of the 56th and 104th sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. Therein we find the greatest insurance policy known to man. Our payment of the premium on this policy works no hardship upon any of us. ¶

With its payment our eternal salvation and exaltation is all but assured. ¶

For fear I didn't say it as emphatically as I desired to in the beginning, I want to say that every day, every week, every month, every year increase the enthusiasm of these brethren who are charged with the responsibility to pay their own tithing, and constantly to increase their contributions to the Church because of the consciousness they have of the direction which comes from God in performing this most sacred trust. ¶

God help us, my brethren, that we might go forth from this conference tonight and bring into the storehouse of the Lord the means by which this Church can grow and develop and serve all of the righteous people of the world who are touched by the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, the power of the Holy Ghost, and submit themselves to baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and by the laying upon of hands to receive the Holy Ghost, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶