I have rejoiced in listening to the instructions that we have received
this morning, as well as during the whole of this Conference. It seems
to me that they ought to make an everlasting impression upon the minds
of the Saints, and that we, one and all, should be determined, under
the influence thereof, to live more faithfully, and to keep the
commandments of God as near as possible in all things; and I have no
doubt that this is the feeling, at the present time, of most of those
who have attended this Conference. It is for us to guard against
temptation that may be presented before us, and, when we leave this
place, that we suffer not ourselves to do or to say anything that is
wrong, but be willing, with an eye single to the glory of God, to
carry out the counsels of his servants, and to perform all the labors
required at our hands in aiding to advance his cause and to build up
his kingdom upon the earth, that we may prepare ourselves for that
which is to come both on the earth and in the eternal worlds. I know
very well that there is no being upon the earth who is thus engaged,
but what feels well; all such rejoice in their labors, and the Spirit
and power of God will rest upon the Saints when they take this course
and adopt this policy.
We have been permitted to live in one of the most auspicious times or
dispensations that has ever been ushered in upon the earth—the
dispensation of the gathering together of all things in Christ, both
which are in heaven and which are on earth. We may feel our weakness
and inability, but it is not our strength or wisdom that is to bring
about the triumph of the purposes of God upon the earth, we are simply
co-workers with our heavenly Father, and his power will bear off his
Saints in the future as it has done in the past and up to the present
time. It is upon his arm that we have to lean, and in him we must put
our trust. When has there been a time when the Saints have trusted in
God and been disappointed? Never; inasmuch as we have done our part,
the Almighty has never failed to do his and fulfill his
promises. We have the power to carry on this work and to perfect
ourselves, and also to perform a labor for our benefit and for the
benefit of our friends who lived before us, who did not have such an
opportunity as we have. This should be impressed upon our minds, and
we should not suffer ourselves to neglect any duty that is incumbent
upon us, whether for our benefit or for the benefit of those who have
lived before us. When we pass behind the veil and meet with our
friends, if we can tell them that, while we were in the flesh, we
attended to and performed certain ordinances and ceremonies in their
behalf which they, while here, had not the privilege of attending to
and performing for themselves, and which they had not power to
accomplish in the spirit world, it certainly will be a matter of
rejoicing to us and also to them; but if, on meeting them there, we
have to admit that we neglected to do that for their benefit which it
had been in our power to attend to, we shall not feel pleasant, and
our friends will most assuredly be disappointed.
In speaking of the Temples now in course of erection in which to
perform the ordinances for the dead, our hearts ought to be inspired
with determinations to do all we can to push them forward to
completion, that, in our day, while we yet live in the flesh, we may
have the privilege of doing a work therein for our dead friends as
well as for ourselves. All these things are before us, and our eyes
should be single to the glory of God, and our hearts set upon building
up his kingdom upon the earth, and not upon objects that do not tend
in this direction. I have felt, for many years, that I was not safe in
any place or upon any errand, and had no business to be engaged in any
labor, no matter what it might be, unless that business, errand or
labor was directed by the Priesthood; and I feel today that all the
labors and operations of the Latter-day Saints, temporal and
spiritual, ought to be organized and directed by the Priesthood which
God has established to lead his people. If our labors are thus
directed they will tell in the right direction—for the upbuilding of
the kingdom of God, and not for the promotion of evil upon the earth.
This is a thing against which we should be continually on our guard.
Human nature is weak, and many people when brought in contact with
evil influences are liable to be led away, they are in danger, and the
best, the safest policy is to keep away from dangerous ground and
beyond the range of evil, and we should not associate with those whose
influence is evil.
Our lives are made up of small items, of labors performed a little at
a time. If our acts are good, if our words are such that the righteous
can approve of them, we need not fear when they are summed up and
judgment rendered, for our lives having been spent in the performance
of good deeds, it will be all right with us, and if we have this
consciousness we can rejoice wherever we are. I can bear testimony
that I have never been disappointed when I have been engaged in the
work of the Lord, and in carrying out the counsels of his servants
unto me. I can bear testimony that this is the work of God, and that
Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, that Brigham Young is a Prophet of
God, and that the Gospel which they have preached to the Latter-day
Saints is the Gospel of the Son of God; and inasmuch as we live
according to its precepts we shall be delivered from evil. Salvation
is revealed in the Gospel, and that salvation commenced to be
received by us when we obeyed it. We can be freed from our sins when
we learn and obey the truth, for in the Gospel there is deliverance
from sin if we will but apply its principles to our lives. When we
find a difficulty in the midst of the people, it is simply because
some one or more have done that which they ought not to have done, and
had they applied the principles of the Gospel applicable to that
particular case, the difficulty might have been avoided. When we
practice the principles of this Gospel to perfection, we shall be
delivered from evil, whether in this world or in the world to come.
For instance, if no murders are committed, none of the evils will be
experienced which grow out of that crime; if the people generally
would cease lying, the evils now resulting because of the great
prevalence of falsehood in the world would be unknown. And so we might
enumerate all of the evils that are committed by the human family and
say that, if the principles of the Gospel of Christ were universally
observed, the evils of every kind now so abundant in all parts of the
world would be known no more. Then it is for us, to whom this Gospel
has been revealed, to learn what is right, and to be faithful in
practicing it, and the more faithful we are in applying ourselves to
this important duty, the more speedily will evil disappear from
amongst us, and the salvation promised by the Gospel be by us enjoyed,
and that is precisely what we want—a present as well as an eternal
salvation by an application of the principles of the Gospel to our
daily lives.
If this course were pursued by mankind generally, it would soon bring
about a millennium, or that still more happy time spoken of by the
Prophets, when the knowledge of God shall cover the earth as the
waters cover the great deep, and when men all the world over are
friends and brothers. This is the direction in which the practice of
the principles of the Gospel leads us, and a continued and close
attention thereto will enable us to overcome every imperfection. At
the same time our heavenly Father is disposed to try those who profess
to have taken upon them the name of Christ, and, in fact, he is trying
us continually in order to prove whether we will serve him in all
things. If an evil is presented before us, we must either receive or
reject it. If we reject it we have overcome; if we accept it, we are
overcome of evil. And we may say that we have continually a trial
before us, and it is for us to be on our guard that we enter not into
temptation, and that we are not overcome, no matter in what guise or
how temptingly evil may present itself to us. We need to be valiant
before the Lord, valiant in testimony, valiant in keeping his
commandments, valiant in rejecting every evil principle and practice
that may be presented before us; and if this is our course, and we
continue therein, the time will come when we will be counted worthy of
an inheritance and exaltation among the sanctified in the presence of
our Father.
I feel to rejoice in the principles of the Gospel that the Lord has
revealed to us, and that, many years ago I had the privilege of
hearing and obeying them. I can say that, from that time until the
present, I have never had the first moment's sorrow because of
anything that I have been called to pass through in connection with
the Gospel, and I hope I never shall. My experience in this cause and
kingdom has been a source of continual rejoicing, and I believe it will be so to the end. I trust brethren and sisters that
this is also your experience, and that you and I may continue faithful
to the end, that we may be counted worthy of the privilege of mingling
with that great company of the sanctified and just whom we have heard
spoken of this morning, and that with them we may receive a crown of
glory and immortality. This is my prayer in the name of the Lord
Jesus. Amen.
- Charles C. Rich