President Smith Has Asked Me To Speak...

• President Smith has asked me to speak to you briefly. It is always a privilege to me and an inspiration to stand before the priesthood and speak to them. It is also a great responsibility. ¶

President Smith has directed his remarks almost entirely to the members of the Melchizedek Priesthood. I should like to address mine to a group of the finest young men in all the world, the holders of the Aaronic or Lesser Priesthood. ¶

I should like to address my remarks to my grandsons. We have in our family five sons-in-law who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood, four grandsons who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood, six grandsons who hold the Aaronic Priesthood, and eight grandsons who are preparing themselves to hold the priesthood. I should like to address my remarks to them tonight. ¶

Importance Of Aaronic Priesthood

No greater responsibility can be given to a young man than to hold the priesthood of God, which is the power of God delegated to him to act in his name in the office which he holds, and to prepare himself for the Melchizedek Priesthood, and to enjoy the blessings of one who is faithful in the priesthood. ¶

The Aaronic Priesthood is so important that the Lord saw fit to send John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery to bestow it upon them, and in these words was it done: ¶

"Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; and this shall never be taken again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness." (D&C 13.) ¶

A Privilege And Opportunity

What a tremendous privilege, opportunity, and responsibility to hold the priesthood! It is just as binding on us as the covenant which President Smith read to the Melchizedek Priesthood, because the covenant applies to both priesthoods to the extent that we hold those priesthoods, and it will determine our status. ¶

If we will prove ourselves as we are tried and tested, we will be given the opportunity to hold this Melchizedek Priesthood. It is somewhat like going from elementary school to high school and from high school to college; also going from mortal life to eternal life. We will be blessed according to the way we live. And may it be said of us, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: ¶

enter thou into the joy of thy lord." ¶

(Matt. 25:21.) How fortunate we are to hold the priesthood. If you would stop and think today that of every 1,000 young men of your age in the world, one man holds the priesthood; with this hall full of young men of Aaronic Priesthood age tonight, there would be only eight holding the Aaronic Priesthood. What a tremendous privilege, opportunity, blessing, and responsibility. ¶

Live To Enjoy Blessings

How important it is to live to enjoy the Spirit and blessings of the Lord, and the respect and confidence of parents, friends, and church leaders, and the Lord himself, particularly so you can look them in the face with a clear conscience, and also yourself in the mirror, and know that you have been living as you should. ¶

Temptations Of Satan

The Lord, speaking of Satan when he was cast out, said: ¶

"And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice." ¶

(Moses 4:4.) He tries to tempt every one of us, every one from a deacon to Christ himself. You remember how he tried to tempt Christ. He chooses emissaries, those who follow him and those who are too weak to do what is right. These emissaries will try to point out the weaknesses in an individual, in the leaders of the Church, in the organizations, and every place they can find any weakness at any time, and they will be saying, "Don't be a coward; don't be a sissy; come on." ¶

I should like to say to you young men tonight that not one young man who is living according to the teachings of the gospel and honoring his priesthood would ever say that to you. ¶

Thank the Lord that he was strong enough to say to Satan, "Get thee behind me, Satan," and I hope we will be able never to be afraid, as one in one thousand in this world, to honor our priesthood. Those who succumb to temptation are always defeated and miserable, unless they repent. ¶

Self-Disciplined Youth

Vice-President Spiro Agnew, when he was speaking to us the other day as he visited with the First Presidency of the Church, said that one thing that appealed to him about our youth, as he was on the BYU campus, is that they are well self-disciplined; and they seemed to be doing their own thing, which was doing what they should be doing, and were happy in doing it. ¶

No Happiness In Wrongdoing

I would like you young men to know that those who are frustrated, who are complaining, who are not living as they should, are not happy. They are frustrated. There is no happiness in wrongdoing. They have their problems, and they are not trying to accomplish. Of course I feel sorry for them because they do not know as you know that all of us are spirit children of God. ¶

They do not know that God really lives, that Jesus is the Christ; that through his birth, death, and resurrection we may all be resurrected; and that this life is not the end but just the beginning of eternal life. ¶

May we all appreciate this and do our best wherever we are to live worthy of it so that we can look into the mirror and see ourselves and say, "Thank the Lord I was strong enough to overcome, to resist." To you who have weakened in any way, who have taken a cigarette, or anything of the kind, just quit it tonight and be happy. You will be happy. The Lord will bless you. ¶

People will respect you, and you will be successful, and you will be doing your duty in helping to bring about the immortality and eternal life of man. ¶

May we do this, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶