Spencer W. Kimball, middle row on rightThe Lord has given to the Church the responsibility of preaching the gospel to the nations of the earth. This is the greatest responsibility of the Church. Men are taught the gospel and called to repentance and warned. When they refuse to heed the warning, they must be left without excuse. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954-56, 2:146).
The world is our responsibility. We cannot evade it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1986]: 42).
Our responsibility is to share the gospel. The program of the Church is vital, vibrant force in the lives of its members. We hold the conviction that this is the Church of Christ, which imposes upon us the responsibility of sharing that witness with others.(Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, ed. Clyde J. Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 248).
We are the only people to whom this holy gospel, priesthood and covenants have been committed in our day, and we shall be held responsible for the use we make of it. Then we should be diligent and faithful in offering this great salvation unto the children of men, and in building up Zion and the kingdom of our God. (Wilford Woodruff, Deseret News, 27 May 1857]: 91).
Great is our work, tremendous is our responsibility in helping to find those to teach. The Lord has laid upon us a mandate to teach the gospel to every creature. This will take the very best efforts of every [member]” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1999]: 107).
It is well to say here that the direct responsibility of preaching the gospel rests upon the priesthood of the Church—not upon the women, though the efficiency of the latter in cottage meetings, in Primaries, and Sunday Schools, and in other phases of missionary work, is of the highest order, and their willingness, even eagerness, to labor is not excelled by that of the young men. (David O. McKay, Gospel Ideals, Salt Lake City: Improvement Era, 1953, p. 129).
We witness in our missionary work the magnificent spectacle of young men and young women [going]...to all the ends of the earth, that by their unselfish services they stand as witnesses at all times and in all places of the divine responsibility upon the Church to teach the gospel. (Harold B. Lee, Conference Report, April 1951, 33).
If I were to couch in definite terms two of the most potent convictions in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, I would name: First, an abiding assurance that the gospel, as taught by the Redeemer when he lived among men and which was later modified, changed and corrupted by men, has been restored by the Redeemer in its purity and fulness; and second, following naturally the first, a conviction in the heart of every member of this Church that the responsibility rests upon the membership of the Church to preach the restored gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1927, 102).
We have a calling, not merely to build the Church of Christ, and to save ourselves therein, but also a commission to save the whole world. We are, as it were, set apart, consecrated for that great purpose. All of Israel must remember, every man or woman who enters the waters of baptism must keep in mind, and every child that comes into the Church must be taught that by the ordinance of baptism we accept the great and divine commission to serve the Lord in building his Church. It will then be easy to keep the commandments of God, to lay aside or meet courageously the temptations that face us. To stand alone, saying selfishly, “I have receive the gospel; it is good to be a Latter-day Saint” will not be doing our duty; but when we say, “Now, I have received this great blessing. I shall pass it on to others”; there comes the flowering in the hearts of men of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. (John A. Widtsoe, Conference Report, October 1946, p. 14).
And so, as Latter-day Saints everywhere, with personal testimonies of these great events, we accept humbly, gratefully, this major responsibility placed upon the Church. We are happy to be engaged in a partnership with our Heavenly Father in the great work of the salvation and exaltation of his children. Willingly we give of our time and our means with which he may bless us to the establishment of his kingdom in the earth. This we know is our first duty and our great opportunity. This spirit as characterized the missionary work of the church of Jesus Christ in all ages. It has been an outstanding mark of the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness of times—our time. Wherever faithful Latter-day Saints are to be found, this spirit of unselfish sacrifice for the greatest cause in all the earth exists. In a statement published to the world during the last world war, the First Presidency of the Church declared: “No act of ours or of the Church must ever interfere with this God-given mandate.” (Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, [May 1974]: 106).
Members who share the gospel experience joy and have the Spirit of the Lord more abundantly. As we share the gospel, we appreciate how precious and meaningful it is to us, and we feel a greater love for God and others. The Lord commanded His followers to preach the gospel in all the world, giving every person the opportunity to accept it or reject it. When people are baptized, they make a covenant to always stand as witnesses of God. They are commanded to share the gospel with those who have not yet received it. AS they live the gospel faithfully, they will set an example, showing their family members and friends the great blessings that come from living the gospel. They should always take advantage of opportunities to answer questions, share printed or audiovisual materials, and invite others to learn more about the message of the restored gospel. Members should pray for those who are not members of the Church. They should pray for missionary opportunities—to serve those who are not of our faith and share what they believe. The Lord promises to help members know what to say and do as they share the gospel. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 84).
Then what is our duty and our position here? The Lord through the Prophet Joseph in the beginning of this work that He was going to call Elders into the vineyard for the last time, to prune the vineyard. We have got to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. The wheat has got to be gathered into the garner before the chaff is burned. And the Elders of Israel have got to go forth and warn the inhabitants of the earth, as Joseph Smith told the Twelve Apostles the last time I saw him before his martyrdom, when he laid before us the work he was required to do. The Prophet said: “Now, you Apostles, round up your shoulders, and bear off this kingdom, or you will be damned, saith the Lord.” I do not forget these things, and they are true. I believe I am the only man living in the flesh who was present on that occasion. This is our position, brethren and sisters, before the Lord. There is a tremendous responsibility upon these Latter-day Saints. We have the world to warn. We have to preach the Gospel, and attend to those things that God has committed to us. (Wilford Woodruff, Conference Report, 9 October 1892; Deseret Weekly, 45 [9 October 1892]: 545-548).
Then we have a mission in the world, each man, each woman, each child, who has grown to understanding or to the years of accountability, ought to be examples to the world, ought, not only to be qualified to preach the truth, to bear testimony of the truth, but they ought to live so that the very life they live, the very words they speak, their every action in life, will be a sermon to the unwary and to the ignorant, teaching them goodness, purity, righteousness, faith in God and love for the human family. (Joseph F. Smith, General Conference, 6 April 1916).
What a responsibility … of leading good men and good women all over this world to know God, and to know what their mission is on earth! Fathers and mothers, fellow workers, do you fully realize today what it means to assume the responsibility of carrying the message of peace and good will to all men? (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1927, 106).
When I came into this Church, I started right out as a missionary, and took a text, and began to travel on a circuit. Truth is my text, the Gospel of salvation my subject, and the world my circuit (Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, sel. John A. Widtsoe, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1941, p. 322).
I think, many times, that we, as elders of Israel and as Latter-day Saints, come far short of realizing our position before the Lord. The work required at our hands is great and mighty; it is the work of Almighty God. We are held responsible for presenting the gospel of Christ to all the nations of the earth.... We are held responsible for all this and for building temples to the Most High, wherein we can enter and attend to ordinances for the salvation of our dead. (Wilford Woodruff, Deseret News: Semi-Weekly, [29 February 1876]: 1).
We are here for a certain purpose; the world was organized for a certain purpose; … the gospel has been introduced for a certain purpose in the different ages of time, and among the different peoples to whom it has been revealed and communicated, and we, today, are in subjection to the general rule. The Lord has led us along as he once led Israel, and as he led the Nephites from the land of Jerusalem, and the ten tribes, and other peoples, who went to different places. He has led us along, and the first thing he did with us...was to send his gospel, having revealed it first to Joseph Smith, and he, being authorized by the Almighty, and having received his appointment through the holy priesthood that exists in the heavens, and with that appointment authority to confer it upon others, did confer it upon others, and they in turn upon others, and hence the gospel was sent to us in the various nations where we resided.
And when these men went forth to proclaim this gospel, they went, as Jesus said, not to do their “will, but the will of the Father who sent them,” [see John 5:30] and to cooperate with the holy priesthood here upon the earth in introducing correct principles. Hence they went among the nations, and thousands and tens of thousands and millions listened to their testimonies; but as it was in former days, so it has been in latter days. Says Jesus—“Strait is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and few there be that find it; while wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there be that go in thereat.” [See Matthew 7:13–14.]
This has been the case in all ages and among all peoples, wherever and whenever the gospel has been preached to them. (John Taylor, Deseret News: Semi-Weekly, [9 May 1876]: 1).
We know that the first and most important duty for us is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, might, mind and strength; and second to that is love for our fellowmen. No people in all the world in proportion to their numbers, are giving such evidence of a love for their fellowmen, and a desire for their welfare, as are the Latter-day Saints. Our missionary work proclaims to all the world our willingness to make financial sacrifice and to labor with no hope of earthly reward, for the salvation of the souls of the children of our Father in heaven. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1925, p. 4).
However insignificant this people may be in the eyes of the world, the God of heaven holds us responsible for preaching this Gospel to every nation under heaven, and we have it to do or we will be damned. We cannot avoid this. Why? Because, as Paul says: “Woe is unto me, if I preach not the Gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:16). There is but one Gospel; never has been but one, and never will be; and Paul says: “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8). That Gospel, ye Saints of the living God, … is in our hands, sent to us by the ministrations of Angels—the same Gospel that was taught from Adam to Christ, and from Christ down to our day and generation, when God has had a people on the earth. (Wilford Woodruff, Millennial Star, [28 November 1895]: 755).
Invite missionaries to present the first lesson to your family in your home. Better yet, invite neighbors to come to your home to be taught by missionaries. Guided by the Spirit, in their own words they will explain how Father in Heaven has used prophets throughout the ages to communicate His plan of happiness to His children. Feel their testimony as they bear witness of the sublime vision in which God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph Smith. They will skillfully unfold the subsequent events that restored the fulness of the gospel, with the authority to act in the name of God, on earth again. You can also accompany missionaries as they teach others these inspiring truths. Your presence will greatly strengthen those who hear these precious truths for the first time. (Richard G. Scott, “The Power of Preach My Gospel,” Ensign, [May 2005]: 29.)
No sooner had the Saints become fairly settled in these valleys than the servants of the Lord turned their attention again to the great missionary work which rested upon the Church.
We were in the midst of poverty and struggling to make the land habitable, but we could not neglect the obligation we were under to spread the gospel abroad; for the Lord had given forth the command that it should be preached in all the world. It is one of the evidences of the divinity of this work that in the midst of all their driving and persecutions the Latter-day Saints have faithfully sought to carry out this command of the Lord. (Lorenzo Snow, The Teachings of Lorenzo Snow, compiled by Clyde Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984, p. 65).
There are numerous people in the world who are hungering for the Lord and for his word. They are thirsting for associations with the Lord, and yet they neither know exactly what they are hungering for nor what will quench their thirst. It is your responsibility and mine to take this message of the gospel to them.
One of the highest forms of Christian service is to share the gospel, because with its acceptance come so many other blessings.
Our work covers this great need, desire, and obsession is to bring to the people of this world the candle of understanding, to light the way out of obscurity and darkness.
This calls for two elements. One is proselyting, and the other is fellowshipping. (Spencer W. Kimball, "Report of the Regional Representatives’ Seminar," Ensign, [November 1976]: 140).
When we come into the Church, we covenant in the waters of baptism that we will do missionary work. We enter into a solemn contract with Deity that we will bear testimony of the restoration of the gospel on every appropriate occasion. We agree "to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all place" that we "may be in, even until death," (Mosiah 18:9). We are also bound by the command that the Lord has given by revelation in this day, that "It becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor" (D&C 88:81). Thus we have an affirmative, positive, definite obligation resting upon us to do missionary work. This matter of carrying the gospel message to the world is not something that we can choose to do or not, if and when we may find it to be convenient. We are under covenant to do it "at all times...and in all places...even until death" (Mosiah 18:9). (Bruce R. McConkie, Conference Report, April 1965, pp. 54-55).
The duty which devolves upon us as a people is to patiently labor in disseminating the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the nations of the earth. . . . This is our duty; and this Gospel of the Kingdom, as we have been told, must be preached as a witness unto all nations before the end comes. It is a labor devolving upon us as a people; and though it may cost many precious lives to do this, the obligation rests upon us nevertheless, and we cannot be freed from it only by the discharge of the duty. (George Q. Cannon, Millennial Star 21 [22 January 1898]: 115).
The Church, being the kingdom of God on earth, has a mission to all nations.
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).
These words from the lips of the Master know no national boundaries; they are not limited to any race or culture. One nation is not favored above another. The admonition is clear—“teach all nations.” (Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, compiled by Clyde Williams. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 245).
We have attained the stature and strength that are enabling us to fulfill the commission given us by the Prophet Joseph Smith that we should carry the glad tidings of the restoration to every nation and to all people.
And not only shall we preach in every nation before the second coming of the Son of Man, but we shall make converts and establish congregations of Saints among them. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Manchester Area Conference, 1971, p. 5).
Our lives are not our own. So much of others have gone into the making of all of us, into teaching, into training, into all that we have inherited, into all that God has given, and especially, above all, the gospel. Earnestly we have an obligation to share it with others. (Richard L. Evans, Conference Report, April 1961, p. 76).
One of the very first revelations that was given by our heavenly Father, as contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, reads as follows:
“Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men. Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day” (D&C 4:1-2).
Now, I do not understand that we are serving God with all our might if we forsake his children, or if we spend so much of our time selfishly building up ourselves, accumulating things of this life, and leave his children in darkness, when we could bring them into the light. My understanding is that the most important mission that I have in this life is: first, to keep the commandments of God, as they have been taught me; and next, to teach them to my Father’s children who do not understand them. It makes little difference, when I go to the other side, whether I have been a man of wealth in this world or not, unless I have used that wealth to bless my fellow men. Though I be a wanderer in this world, and suffer for the necessities of life, if by reason of the knowledge that my Father has given me, I devote myself to the instruction of his children, to planting faith in their hearts, to dissipating the errors that have come to them by tradition. I believe when I go to the other side that I will find there a bank account that will be beyond compare with what I would have, if I lived for the things of the earth alone. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1950, pp. 50-51).
We as a people have one supreme thing to do, and that is to call upon the world to repent of sin, to come to God. And it is our duty above all others to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the restoration again to the earth of the plan of life and salvation. . . . We have in very deed the pearl of great price. We have that which is of more value than all the wealth and scientific information which the world possesses. We have the plan of life and salvation. . . . The best way in the world to show love for our neighbor is to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of which he has given us an absolute knowledge concerning its divinity. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1927, pp. 175-176).
The world is hungry to hear the truth as never before in its history. We have it. Are we equal to the task—to the responsibility God has placed upon us? (David O. McKay, Conference Report, October 1945, 113–114).
As apostles, seventies, elders, priests, etc., we are accountable to the Most High God. If we do our duty, then our skirts will be clean. We are watchmen upon the walls of Zion. It is our duty to warn the inhabitants of the earth of the things that are to come, and if they reject our testimony, then their blood will come upon their own heads. When the judgments of God overtake the wicked they cannot say they have not been warned. My garments, and the garments of thousands of others, are clean of the people of this generation, as also the garments of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and those of the elders of Israel who have died in the faith. We have borne our testimony, and when the judgments of God come, men cannot say they have not been warned. (Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-day Book Depot, 1855-1886, 21:283).
We have a mission in the world: each man, each woman, each child who has grown to understanding or to the years of accountability, ought. . .to be qualified to preach the truth, to bear testimony of the truth. (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine 13th ed. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968, pp. 251-252).
When we truly understand how great a blessing the gospel of Jesus Christ is in our lives, when we accept and embrace these eternal truths and allow them to sink deep into our hearts and souls, we experience a "mighty change" (Alma 5:14) in our hearts.
We are filled with love and gratitude. As the prophet Alma wrote, we feel "to sing the song of redeeming love" (Alma 5:26) to all who will hear it.
"O, that I were an angel," Alma said, "and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!
"Yea, I would declare unto every soul. . .the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth" (Alma 29:1–2).
So it should be with us, my brothers and sisters. Our love for the Lord and appreciation for the Restoration of the gospel are all the motivation we need to share what gives us much joy and happiness. It is the most natural thing in the world for us to do, and yet far too many of us are hesitant to share our testimonies with others. (M. Russell Ballard, “Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home,” Conference Report, April 2006).
How will I feel, or you, when called before the judgment seat, if someone shall point his finger at me, or you, and say that "if it had not been for the actions of this man or this group I would have received the truth; but I was blinded because they, professing to have the light, did not live it. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church News, [16 June 1934]: 4).
I want to emphasize that we as a people have one supreme thing to do and that is to call upon the world to repent of sin, to come to God. And it is our duty above all others to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the restoration again to the earth of the plan of life and salvation.... We have in very deed the pearl of great price. We have that which is of more value than all the wealth and the scientific information which the world possesses. We have the plan of life and salvation. The first great commandment was to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, might, mind, and strength; and the second was like unto it, to love our neighbors as ourselves. And the best way in the world to show our love for our neighbor is to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of which he has given us an absolute knowledge concerning its divinity. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1927, pp. 175-176).
I remember that in revelation after revelation given just before the Church was organized, and in its early days, that men came to the man whom God had chosen as his prophet, and asked that he inquire of the Lord what was the most important labor for them to perform. Uniformly, the answer came that the greatest and most profitable labor in which they could engage was to bring souls to a knowledge of the gospel. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, October 1916, p. 32).
Now, we are a busy people; but the Lord did not say, "If it is convenient for you, would you consider preaching the gospel." He has said, "Let every man learn his duty" (D&C 107:99) and "Behold...it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor (D&C 88:81)."
We must remember that God is our ally in this. He is our help. He will open the way, for he gave the commandment.
We are sometimes tempted with Habakkuk to cry, "O Lord, how long shall I cry," for many do not hear” (Habakkuk 1:2). And then we remember the Lord's reply to Habakkuk, "I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you" (1:5).
The day for carrying the gospel to ever more places, to ever more people, is here. Are we ready for the call? With Nephi we must say anew, "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (1 Nephi 3:7). (Spencer W. Kimball, "Are We Doing All We Can?" Ensign, [February 1983]: 3-4).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives." He further declared: "I think every member of the Church has the capacity to teach the gospel to nonmembers. I was told the other day of a crippled woman, homebound, who spends her days in a wheelchair, who has been the means of bringing thirty-seven people into the Church. . . We need an awareness, an everyday awareness of the great power that we have to do this thing. Second, a desire. . . I am as satisfied as I am of anything that with that kind of prayerful, conscientious, directed effort, there isn't a man in this Church who could not convert another. . . Third, the faith to try. It is so simple. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Ready to Harvest." Improvement Era, [July 1961]: 508).
The responsibility of the Church is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ as restored to the Prophet Joseph Smith, not only to preach it and proclaim it by word, by distribution of literature, but more than anything else by living the gospel in our homes and in our business dealings, having faith and testimony in our hearts, and radiating it wherever we go....There is nothing that can stop the progress of truth excepting only our weaknesses or failure to do our duty. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, Oct. 1969, 88–89).
You know President McKay established the rule: “Every member a missionary.” But now I wish we could reestablish that in the hearts of all the members of the Church all over the world, every member. If a person is old enough to be a member, he is old enough to be a missionary; and he doesn’t need to be set apart especially for that calling. He can just go out and proselyte and bring people to the Church. (Spencer W. Kimball, Fiji Area Conference, [February 1976]: 11).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Alaska Anchorage Regional Conference, 18 June 1995).
I do not believe there was ever a generation of men who inhabited the earth who were more wicked, or who were practicing greater abominations, or who were sinning against greater light and knowledge, or who had a greater flood of judgments proclaimed against them by the word of the Lord, than the generation in which we live. Therefore, as Saints of the living God, who bear the Holy Priesthood, we shall be under condemnation if we do not lift up the warning voice against the evils and abominations which exist, so far as we have opportunity. (Wilford Woodruff, Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, sel. G. Homer Durham, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1946, p. 228).
These...missionaries [are] scattered throughout the world, and yet that is not a drop in the bucket, but in the Lord's own way, and he says it will be done by those that he directs, all the people of the world must be reached if possible and the gospel of Jesus Christ brought to them as far as we can go. So we have a great responsibility, my brethren, a tremendous responsibility. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1950, pp. 174-175).
That is your mission, my brethren and sisters of the Church, that is your responsibility. Freely you have received and our Heavenly Father will expect you freely to share with His other sons and daughters these glorious truths. (George Albert Smith, Sharing the Gospel with Others, Preston Nibley sel., Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1948, p. 213).
The injunction of the Lord to missionaries is clear. You are to warn the inhabitants of the world. You are to declare vigorously the gospel message in simplicity and plainness. You are to seek humbly and earnestly for every honest-hearted soul, and strive diligently to teach him the truth and help bring him into the Church. (The First Presidency: David O. McKay, J. Reuben Clark, Jr., Henry D. Moyle, 12 April 1961).
As agents of the Lord we are not called or authorized to teach the philosophies of the world or the speculative theories of our scientific age. Our mission is to preach the doctrines of salvation in plainness and simplicity as they are revealed and recorded in scripture.
After directing us to teach the principles of the gospel found in the standard works, as guided by the Spirit, the Lord then made that great pronouncement which governs all the teaching of His gospel by anyone in the Church, “And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach.” (D&C 42:14). (Joseph Fielding Smith, Conference Report, 2 October 1970).
Now I would counsel you young men as you enter your missionary service to forget the mysteries. Speaking of the mysteries reminds me of the man who got up to talk and said, “I will now proceed to expound upon that which the Lord has not yet seen fit to reveal!” Mysteries include those matters that are speculative. They are things which have not been revealed or are beyond our understanding. It is the plain, simple truth confirmed by the Spirit that converts when accompanied by the testimony of a humble servant of the Lord. (James E. Faust, Conference Report, April 1996).
The Lord has placed upon us the responsibility to preach the gospel, but there is another great responsibility. I think some of our missionaries have had an idea that all we had to do was to make friends, and if they wanted to come in the Church, well and good, and the missionaries have not realized that they were under the obligation to leave a warning, and it is just as necessary that we warn the world as it is to declare the way of eternal life. The Lord said to the missionaries who went out in the early days:
"That ye may be prepared in all things when I shall send you again to magnify the calling were unto I have called you, and the mission with which I have commissioned you.
"Behold, I send you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.
"Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads." (D&C 88:80-82.)
Every missionary who goes out should see to it that he leaves his testimony, so that he will be free as the Lord has declared he should be in section four of the Doctrine and Covenants; and so that every man with whom he comes in contact should be warned and left without excuse, and thus the blood of every man be upon his own head. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Conference Report, April 1946, p. 158).
From now on, brethren, we expect that every year there will be a great increase in conversions and baptisms. . . .Our most important goal is to bring the gospel to all people. We must convert more people. We must find ways and means. (Spencer W. Kimball, Regional Representatives’ Seminar, 3 April 1975, p. 6).
It follows that every member of he Church, whether man or woman, may be called to go on a mission for the upbuilding of his fellowmen. In harmony with the law of free agency, it is voluntary with the individual whether he accept or refuse the call. The practice in the Church is that those who accept missionary calls go at their own expense, on a term mission, varying in length, but usually not more than two years. The missionaries of the Church not only assist the members already gathered into the Church, but they travel over the world, preaching the everlasting Gospel, and bringing others who accept the truth into the Church. The purpose of he Church missionary system is to preach the Gospel to all members of the human race, so that, as far as possible, none may be left with the excuse that he has not heard the Gospel. (John A. Widtsoe, A Rational Theology, 4th ed. rev., Salt Lake City: Desert Book, 1937, pp. 123-124).
There is nothing that any of you could do for the time and season of your missionary appointments which would be as important as the work that lies ahead of you...We are all called to raise the warning voice to invite men to forsake the world, and come unto Christ and gain all of the blessings of the gospel. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Improvement Era, [September 1970]: 13).
There is only one day that you and I have to live for, and that's today. There is nothing we can do about yesterday except repent, and there may be no tomorrow. The thing for us to do when we arise from our beds as God gives us a new day, is to take whatever comes to our hands, and do it to the best of our ability. (Harold B. Lee, cited in The Missionary's Little Quote Book, compiled by R. Dale Jeffrey, American Fork, Utah : Covenant Communications, 1997).
You may be able to teach some investigators in a few visits; others may require more visits. You have the flexibility to teach the lessons in whatever way best helps people full prepare for their baptism and confirmation. Your purpose is not only to cover the material; it is to help others come unto Christ through faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 72).
The missionary process is fourfold: (1) finding the investigator, (2) teaching the investigator, (3) baptizing the worthy convert, (4) fellowshipping the new member....It is important that 5 years from now, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, the man or the woman whom you baptized is an active and faithful and devoted and worthy member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Missionary meeting, Houston, Texas, 20 September 1998).
Therefore, ye elders of Israel, and young men who are in the vineyard of the Lord, or who dwell in Zion, prepare yourselves the whole armor of God, and bear a true and faithful testimony unto all people where providence may call you, that your garments may be clean from the blood of all men, for the eyes of all the heavenly hosts of God, angels and men, are watching over you with the feelings of the deepest interest. You are called and ordained of God to prepare this great and mighty work for the coming of the Son of Man. (Wilford Woodruff, "Encouragement to the Elders," Contributor [July 1884]: 394).
Former investigators are a valuable source for finding people to teach. There are many reasons why people stop investigating the Church. Reasons include missionaries being transferred, missionaries stopping visits even though investigators are still expecting visits, and investigators believing that the missionaries have nothing new to teach them. Many former investigators say they would meet with missionaries again.
Review your area book often to identify former investigators. Prayerfully reflect on the information in the area book concerning how the investigators first came in contact with the Church, what have they been taught, how they have responded, and why they quit investigating the gospel. If members have been involved in teaching and fellowshipping the former investigators, ask the members what they remember about the experience. Based on this information, make plans to contact the investigators again.
If someone you are teaching chooses to discontinue their investigation of the gospel, record information in the area book that will be helpful for the missionaries who will contact them in the future. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 166).
Neither God nor angels look to any other people than the Latter-Day Saints--the elders of Israel, the young men of Zion, to go forth bearing the Holy Priesthood, to warn this Christian, Gentile generation with the gospel of Jesus Christ of the judgments which are to come; and their testimony will prove a savor of life unto life or of death unto death to all who hear it. (Wilford Woodruff, "Encouragement to Elders," Contributor [July 1884]: 394).
No man can do a bigger thing, nor a better thing in this world, than to save his fellow men. (Stephen L. Richards, Conference Report, October 1918).
We have the obligation of spreading the gospel to the world. This responsibility of missionary work is yours, so prepare yourself to take advantage of your opportunities. (Joseph Fielding Smith, LDS International Explorer Conference, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, 23 August 1963).
If the people of the world knew what we had to offer them, there would be seven billion hands raised to ask us. You're going out to do the most sacred, the most important duty the Lord can give to man. (Spencer W. Kimball, Improvement Era, [September 1970]: 13).
Although our numbers are increasing rapidly, each of us must labor continually at missionary work, whether by our example of Christ-like living or by actually proselyting and teaching the principles of the gospel.
I am reminded of an experience I had while I was in Canada. I worked side by side for a number of years with a man who was not a member of the Church. I had been reluctant to approach the subject of religion for fear of putting a strain on our friendly relationship. But finally I felt impressed to see if he were interested in learning about Mormonism and the gospel of Jesus Christ. He expressed interest and immediately thereafter he and his wife attended Sunday services with us. They, with their children, soon joined the Church, and they have indeed made a great contribution in time and talent. The parents have just returned from presiding over a mission, and the children have made contributions in various areas of service, and some have filled missions. What a loss to the Church if I had neglected my responsibilities to tell them the good news of the gospel message!
On one occasion when he chastised me for waiting so long before telling him about the Church and thus keeping his family from enjoying the blessings of the gospel, I determined that would not happen again and that I would be more aware of who I was and act accordingly. (N. Eldon Tanner, "Remember Who You Are," Ensign, [January 1983]: 3-4).
I wonder if we are doing all we can. Are we complacent in our approach to teaching all the world? Are we prepared to lengthen our stride? To enlarge our vision?
Remember our ally is our God. He is our commander. He made the plans. He gave the commandment. (Spencer W. Kimball, Regional Representatives’ Seminar, 4 April 1974).
It should be the duty of the elder to stand up boldly for the cause of Christ, and warn the people with one accord to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins, and for the Holy Ghost; always commanding them in the name of the Lord in the spirit of meekness. (Joseph Smith, Jr., History of the Church, Salt Lake City, Deseret Book Co., 1978, 2:262).
We all share this great responsibility. We cannot avoid it. Let no man or woman think that because of where we live or because of our place in society or because of our occupation or status, we are exempt from this responsibility. (Ezra Taft Benson, Come Unto Christ, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983, p. 91).
My understanding is that the most important mission that I have in this life is: first, to keep the commandments of God, as they have been taught to me; and next, to teach them to my Father's children who do not understand them. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1916, p. 50).
Do we realize that every man is in the image of God and is a son of God and every woman his daughter? No matter where they may be, they are his children, and he loves them and desires their salvation. Surely as members of this Church we cannot sit idly by. We cannot receive the beneficent favor of our Heavenly Father that is bestowed upon us, the knowledge of eternal life, and selfishly retain it, thinking that we may be blessed thereby. It is not what we receive that enriches our lives, it is what we give. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1935, p. 46).
Just as the Lord called his servant Abraham to serve as a missionary 4,000 years age, so is he calling the Saints today. We must all be missionaries and prepare our sons to be full-tine missionaries. Those who have made even a slight effort to share the gospel can testify of the joy they find through sharing it with their earthly brothers and sisters. Our efforts to spread the gospel have been feeble; we must do more. Like Abraham, we must declare the gospel to the world, not stopping with a vocal declaration, but living the gospel so others can see the truth. (Spencer W. Kimball, "The Example of Abraham," Ensign, [June 1975]: 6).
There never was a set of men since God made the world under a stronger responsibility to warn this generation, to lift up our voices long and loud, day and night so far as we have the opportunity and declare the words of God unto this generation. We are required to do this. This is our calling. It is our duty. It is our business. (Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 21:122).
I further wish to state to the Twelve and to the seventies, and to the elders that they are not responsible for the reception or the rejection by the world of that word which God has given to them to communicate. It is proper for them to use all necessary diligence and fidelity, and plainly and intelligently, and with prayer and faith to go forth as messengers to the nations, as the legates of the skies, clothed upon with authority from the God of heaven, even the authority of the Holy Priesthood,...and when they have performed their labors and fulfilled their duties, their garments are free from the blood of this generation, and the people are then left in the hands of God their Heavenly Father. For the people...will be responsible to God for their rejection of the gospel and not to us. (John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 7 October 1883, 24:289).
You heard the Elders. They told you they had been sent by God and that they had the fullness of the Gospel to offer to man, and they explained to you the principles thereof. They told you there was but one Gospel, and that God had never revealed but the one, the Gospel that Paul referred to when he said: “Though we, or an angel from heaven preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” You believed and obeyed, and gathered with the Saints. (Wilford Woodruff, Conference Report, 6 October 1889; Deseret Weekly, 39 [4 October 1889]: 418).
I warn you this day that the Lord holds us responsible to call his children to repentance and for the promulgation of his truth. If we fail to take advantage of our opportunities to teach the sons and daughters of God, who are not of our faith, who dwell in our midst, this gospel of our Lord, he will require at our hands on the other side of the veil what we have failed to do, so let us not be recreant. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1916, p. 48).
The Lord said to Ezekiel, "I have made thee a watchman unto the House of Israel. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul." [3:17.] This is precisely our condition today. As Apostles, seventies, high priests, and elders, we and all men who bear any portion of the Holy Priesthood, are watchmen upon the walls of Zion and messengers to all the inhabitants of the earth, and all of us will be held responsible if we do not improve our time and lift the warning voice, as far as we have opportunity, and warn this generation of the judgments of God which await them. (Wilford Woodruff, Millennial Star, 48:803).
As far as I am concerned, there is nothing I can do for the time and season of this mortal probation that is more important than to use all my strength, energy, and ability in spreading and perfecting the cause of truth and righteousness. (Bruce R. McConkie, "Think on These Things," Ensign, [January 1974]: 47).
Our duty is to preach the gospel to all men. Who, the First Presidency? Yes, if there is nobody else. The Twelve? Yes, it is their special calling to preach it themselves or see that it is preached to all the world. And, then, the seventies, it is their duty to go forth at the drop of the hat, as minute men, to preach the gospel to all nations, under the guidance of the Twelve. And, then, it is for those who are in Zion, the high priests and others, to go and preach the gospel. (John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 26:110).
Our most important obligation...is to divide with our Father's children all those fundamental truths, all his rules and regulations which prepare us for eternal life known as the gospel of Jesus Christ. Until we have done that to the full limit of our power, we will not receive all the blessings which we might otherwise have. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1945, p. 119).
We contemplate the human race, past, present, and yet to come, as immortal beings, for whose salvation it is our mission to labor; and to this work, broad as eternity and deep as the love of God, we devote ourselves, now and forever. (The First Presidency: Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, Anthon H. Lund, An Address of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to the World, April 1907).
We ask those of you who are not yet members of the Church to be patient of we seem too anxious to share what we have. If we do not share it, we may lose it. That is one of the requirements of we are to keep it. Therefore, missionary work is not casual, it is very determined. (Boyd K. Packer, "Where Much is Given, Much is Required," Ensign, [November 1974]: 87).
I have unbounded confidence and faith in you, our young brethren. You are the warriors of the Restoration. And in this spiritual battle, you are to relieve the spiritual hunger and feed the sheep. It is your duty!
We have the fullness of the everlasting gospel. We have the obligation to share it with those who do not have it. God grant that we will honor that commission from the Lord and prepare ourselves and answer the call. (Boyd K. Packer, CR A'84, Ensign, [May 1984]: 43).
Some time ago, as the General Authorities met together on a upper floor of the temple, President Kimball stood and instructed us, saying: "Brethren, of late I have been concerned and troubled by the fact that we do not have sufficient missionaries proclaiming the message of the Restoration. I hear some parents say, 'We hope our son fills a mission because it would be such a growing experience for him.'"
He continued: "I have heard some young men say, 'I think I might serve a mission if I really want to go.'" President Kimball raised his voice, stood on tiptoe--as he is prone to do when anxious to communicate with power a special thought--and said: "It doesn't really matter whether Mother or Father thinks it might be nice for a son to serve a mission. It doesn't really matter whether or not John, Bill, and Bob want to go--they must go!" President Kimball then proceeded to point out the missionary obligation each of us has, to repay the sacrifice and service of those missionaries who left home and family and brought the gospel to our parents or grandparents in lands near and far.
I love to read my own grandfather's missionary journal. His first entries are classics. He wrote: "Today I married in the Salt Lake Temple the girl of my dreams." The very next night the journal entry read: "Tonight the bishop called at our house. I have been asked to return to Scandinavia for a two-year mission. Of course I will go, and my sweet wife will remain at home and sustain me." I am grateful for a missionary heritage. (Thomas S. Monson, CR O'84, Ensign, [November 1984]: 41).
Because the gospel is the most important thing in this or any world, because we alone have this power of God unto salvation, and because it is for all men, the Lord has commanded us to go forth. . . "in solemnity and the spirit of prayer, in bearing testimony to all the world of those things which are communicated unto" us. (D&C 84:61).
His word, not to those of a former day, but to us, is: "Go ye into all the world;... that the testimony may go from you into all the world unto every creature." (D&C 84:62.)
By his own mouth he has promised us: "Every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost." (D&C 84:64.)
Also from his own mouth we hear this awesome truth: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, they who believe not my on your words, and are not baptized in water in my name, for the remission of their sins, that they may receive the Holy Ghost, shall be damned, and shall not come into my Father's kingdom where my Father and I am.
"And this revelation unto you, and commandment, is in force from this very hour upon all the world, and the gospel is unto all who have not received it." (D&C 84:74-74.)
From what source shall the world receive the gospel? From what fountain shall they drink to receive that water which quenches eternal thirst? These words contain the Lord's answer: "Verily I say unto all those to whom the kingdom has been given--from you it must be preached unto them." (D&C 84:76.)
Who carries the message of salvation to the world? Who is responsible to do missionary work? Whose voice do our Father's other children hear, inviting them to keep every true principle they now possess, but to receive the added light and knowledge that has come by the opening of the heavens in our day?
The Lord's answer is: "All those to whom the kingdom has been given." This is not a work reserved for Apostles and prophets alone. It is not restricted to seventies and those called on missions.
The genius of the heaven-sent system is that it involves all of the Saints. It will take all of us, plus the converts yet unmade, and our children and our children's children, to raise the warning voice in the ears of all of them. (Bruce R. McConkie, "Let the Word Go Forth," Ensign, [February 1985]: 72-73).
It should be the aim of all the members of the Church to carry out practically in their lives the principles of the Gospel. In no way can we better convince the world of their truth than in showing in our acts and dealings with one another and with mankind the elevating effect they have upon us. We make high professions, and there should be such a high standard of purity of life among us as to correspond with these professions. (Wilford Woodruff, “An Epistle to the Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Millennial Star, [14 November 1887]: 729).
Alma tells us that we make a covenant in the waters of baptism to serve the Lord and keep his commandments. One of the express provisions of this covenant is a solemn promise on our part "to stand as witnesses of God"--meaning both the Father and the Son—"at all times and in all things, and in all places that [we] may be in, even until death." This, Alma says, is required of us, if we are to "be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that [we] may have eternal life." (Mosiah 18:9).
Being thus under covenant to testify of Christ and his gospel everywhere and at all times, as long as we breathe the breath of life, it comes as no surprise to hear the Divine Voice say to each of us:
"I sent you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.
"Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads." (D&C 88:81-82.)
I leave with each of you the problem of determining upon whose heads their sins will rest if we fail to raise the warning voice.
To raise the warning voice is to preach the gospel; it is to set forth the plan of salvation; it is to teach that sins are remitted by baptism; it is to testify that all who believe and obey shall be saved and that those who reject and disobey shall be damned.
What a warning that is--a warning to forsake the world or suffer the desolations and plagues, both temporal and spiritual, that shall fall upon the ungodly in the coming days.
Thus it is that we--meaning every member of the kingdom who has arrived at the age of accountability--have a divinely imposed duty, a revealed responsibility, an overriding obligation to proclaim the message of the restoration to the world. it is a divine appointment, lighted as a fire by the power of the Spirit, that should burn as a holy fire in our hearts at all times.
Orson Pratt baptized one of my great grandfathers in Scotland. I thereby inherited the blessings of the gospel by being born under the covenant. Is there any way I can repay those who brought the gospel to me, except by taking it in turn to others whose souls are equally precious in the sight of Him who is no respecter of persons?
Those of us who hold the holy priesthood--all of us, elders, seventies, high priests, patriarchs, and Apostles--have an additional responsibility, because of our calls to be ministers of Christ, to go forth and preach the gospel "as with the voice of a trump." Unto all who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood this world has come from the Lord: "And now this calling and commandment give I unto you concerning all men--
"That as many as shall" receive the gospel and the priesthood "shall be ordained and sent forth to preach the everlasting gospel among the nations. . .
And this commandment shall be given unto the elders of my church, that every man which will embrace it with singleness of heart may be ordained and sent forth, even as I have spoken." (D&C 36:1, 4-5, 7). (Bruce R. McConkie, "Let the Word Go Forth," Ensign, [February 1985]: 73).
The safety of the Church in generations ahead rests on our success in calling missionaries. If we have concern for the future of this work, we will not rest until every able-bodied young man is made worthy and desires to receive a call to a mission.
Now, I only mentioned in the beginning the matter that we are commanded to preach the gospel. We're commanded to preach whether there is any extra benefits and blessings to it or not. Why? It is our duty! That is a principle, a commanding principle!
Procedures and programs and policies and organization and budgets and buildings are important in their place. These we must do, but we must not leave the weightier matters undone.
We must move forward. We could open six new missions right now if we had the missionaries. So our counsel and instruction to all leaders is to move forward, to renew with great urgency the calling of young men and a lesser but sufficient number of young sisters, to go forth to preach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people in answer to the commandment that we have been given. (Boyd K. Packer, "Principles," Ensign, [March 1985]: 10).
Well, I believe that the Lord is waiting for us to move. I think the Lord is sitting there on his throne and is saying, "Whenever those good people down there catch the vision, I am going to bless them as they have never seen blessings or heard of them. But as long as they are content and they are satisfied to send a few of their boys and a few of them go on missions themselves, a few of them give a few hundred dollars, a thousand dollars to the missionary program, as long as they are content to just go right on as they have been doing for a long while, well, there is not much use of me, their Lord, to open the doors if nobody wants to go through them. Why open a gate? Everybody's standing out here not daring to move in." (Spencer W. Kimball, Address Spokane, Washington, 24 July 1974).
We are happy to be engaged in a partnership with our Heavenly Father in the great work of the salvation and exaltation of His children. Willingly we give of our time and the means with which He may bless us to the establishment of His kingdom in the earth. This we know is our first duty and our great opportunity. This spirit has characterized the missionary work of the Church of Jesus Christ in all ages. It has been an outstanding mark of the ushering in of the dispensation of the fullness of times--our time. Wherever faithful Latter-day Saints are to be found, this spirit of unselfish sacrifice for the greatest cause in all the earth exists. In a statement published to the world during the last world war, the First Presidency of the Church declared: "No act of ours or of the Church must interfere with this God-given mandate." (Conference Report, April 1942, p. 91). (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, pp. 49-50).
With renewed emphasis, let us urge missionary service as well as help to missionaries as a duty and a responsibility. The mandate of the Lord is upon us. It is our responsibility to carry the gospel to the people of the earth. Marvelous things are happening. Yet more wonderful things can be brought to pass. May we be faithful in building the kingdom we love and in doing the will of Him who is our Savior and who commanded us to teach the gospel.
At this time of the year, when the thoughts of so many turn to the birth and life of the Lord and the sharing of gifts, let us each do something to share the greatest gift we can give anyone--the gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let each of us participate in missionary service in some way at this Christmas season. Let us be bearers of love and peace to all mankind. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 6).
There are at least twenty-seven sections of the Doctrine and Covenants that refer to missionary work. The first great responsibility placed upon this Church in our day was to carry this message to the world. It is still a major responsibility. It is going on here on earth and it is going on in greater volume on the other side, and whether you do it here or over there doesn't make very much difference, just so long as you are missionaries. If you are laboring as you should, if you love this work, you will be engaged in helping to save the souls of the children of man throughout eternity until they have all heard it. And so it is the greatest work in all the world. There isn't anything like it in magnitude, in importance, in size, in promise. (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, p. 66).
No person can read Section One of the Doctrine and Covenants, realizing that the Church accepts it as the word of the Lord, and ask why we send missionaries into all parts of the world. The responsibility, and a major one it is, falls squarely upon the membership of the Church, for "the voice of warning," says the Lord, "shall be unto all people by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days" (D&C 1:4). (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, p. 48).
Evangelistic harvest is always urgent. The destiny of man and of nations is always being decided. Every generation is crucial; every generation is strategic. We may not be responsible for past generations, but we cannot escape full responsibility for this one, and we have our time and our generation and our missionaries and our great potential. (Spencer W. Kimball, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 27 June 1974).
We are indebted, each of us individually, to the missionaries who brought the gospel to us or to our ancestors; many of us owe these missionaries more than we owe anyone else. We received from them the pearl of great price. We have an obligation to discharge our debt, and one of the very best ways in which we can do this is to go forth ourselves as missionaries, or otherwise to use our talents and our means to see that others of our Father's children have the opportunity to receive that which has been restored in this day. (Bruce R. McConkie, Conference Report, April 1965, p. 55).
The responsibility of preaching the gospel rests upon us. When the people in Macedonia called to Paul, and the spirit told him to go over, he answered the call. They are calling for us; various nations, they are calling for more missionaries now in the missions already established, and we must answer the call. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1953, p. 59).
I have been all over the world...and I've preached the gospel to a great many people. I've been among the Indians in the Southwest; I have been among the Indians in India. I have been all over the country, and I have preached the gospel and borne my testimony to people all over the world.
I remember when we had only six or eight hundred missionaries in all the world. Now we have twenty-three thousand, approximately. I remember when my people who were approached to go on missions would say, "I can't go, I've got so many cows, and I’ve got so many acres. I've got so much to do."
I know and I am finding out that where there is a will there is a way, and the Lord can help us find the ways to teach. Now it is quite obvious that twenty-three thousand missionaries is nothing. It is just a drop in the bucket when we talk about four billion people. Even if we talk about only the people of Sydney, if we had all our missionaries right here in Sydney, we would probably not get around to all the people here.
Now I hope to see the day when a great army of Australian boys go across the Pacific and go down to South America. I am looking forward to the day when a great army of your sons may cross the Indian Ocean and go to India and Burma and the other nations in that area. it is not easy, because of their doctrines, because of their way of life. It isn't easy.
We are going to have to have a lot of help and I am convinced since the Lord is the one who said you have to go and do it, he will be able to open the gates for us. To that end we have asked all the people of the whole world to include in their family prayers and in their Church prayers always to ask the Lord to open the gates, open the doors so that the people can be proselyted and taught the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Now unfortunately that is what we are up against. If you have faith, if I have faith, faith enough to keep asking the Lord, I am positive the day will come when the gates will be opened. They will say, "Here, here are a lot of visas take them and use them."
Whenever I visit a foreign country and talk to the people there who are in charge of the government, I always mention to them, "You know, these missionaries are the best ambassadors that you have ever had or ever will have. These young men who come to Australia, these young men who go to New Zealand, these who go to Japan-they are the best people for the country, the very, very best. They will always be good ambassadors." Have you ever noticed a group of missionaries talking about their missionary service? They talk about Sister so-and-so being baptized and Brother so-and-so joining the Church, and they always say good things about the nation...
I don't see any reason why we couldn't send Australian boys all over the East. I don't see why we couldn't send them all over the south, South America. However, the South Americans are doing a tremendous job there, turning in a great many missionaries.
Now that is what we are asking you to do. Will you brethren pledge with yourself tonight that you just will not have anymore prayers without this suggestion in them to the Lord: "Oh, how we need your help. Help us find the way to get to these people. Help us to convince these people. But above all, help us to open the doors and get into these nations that are far, far away." (Spencer W. Kimball, Sydney Australia Area Conference, 28 February 1976).
Now I submit to you that the Lord does not deal in statistical impossibilities, and when he pleases upon any people the obligation of preaching the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people it is an assignment to be taken seriously and not something beyond possible reach. I have made the statement often that if every person in the Church did his job as a missionary as well as Wilford Woodruff once did, this would be accomplished now. (Richard L. Evans, Conference Report, April 1947, p. 96).
The missionaries of the Church have been sent out to warn the people and to gather out of the nations and out of our own land all who are willing to repent and receive the gospel. They are also commanded to warn others that they might escape the calamities and the judgments which are bound to continue if people will not receive the gospel.
When we see evil lurking, when we see dangers confronting the people, and especially the Latter-day Saints, it is our duty to raise the warning voice, and not only in behalf of the Latter-day Saints, but to warn all people, for our mission is one that is world-wide, and we should warn all men and give them the opportunity of repentance, of serving the Lord and keeping his commandments if they will. If they will not, yet we have saved our souls. We are clear from the blood of this generation. That is our duty. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954-56, 1:309-310).
This work is vital. It is vital! If we don't do it, we could just fade out and be eliminated from this old world, if we get too careless. We had better be doing what the Lord said when He went on the mountain, and said, "Go ye into all the world." He said, "GO! GO! GO! into all the world." And that means China, and India, and Japan, and Korea--"Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." (Spencer W. Kimball, Fair Oaks, California Dedication Address, 9 October 1983).
I am inclined to think that notwithstanding the gains we see in the work of the Lord, notwithstanding the reformation we see in the lives of many people, often we are prone to emphasize the problems and disregard the progress.
I am optimistic concerning the work of the Lord. I cannot believe that God has established His work in the earth to have it fail. I cannot believe that it is getting weaker. I know that it is getting stronger. I realize, of course, that we are beset in the world with many tragic problems. I am a newspaper reader, and I have seen a good deal of this earth. I have been in areas where war rages and hate smolders in the hearts of people. I have seen the appalling poverty that hovers over many lands. I have seen the oppression of those in bondage and the brutality of their overlords. I have watched with alarm the crumbling morals of our society.
And yet I am optimistic. I have a simple and solemn faith that right will triumph and that truth will prevail. I am not so naive as to believe there will not be setbacks, but I believe that “truth crushed to earth will rise again. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
Upon us, as elders of this Church, has been laid the obligation to go into all the world and preach the gospel unto every creature. We have received a wonderful gift, but with that gift comes a great responsibility. We have been blessed of the Lord with a knowledge beyond our fellows, and with that knowledge comes the requirement that we divide it with his children wherever they may be. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1922, p. 53).
It is true that not every man is a natural missionary, and there are those who shrink from the responsibility of raising their voices in proclamation of the gospel, and yet this is an obligation that we owe to this fallen world. The elders in the very beginning had been commanded to serve the Lord with all their "heart, might, mind and strength," for the field is white and ready for the harvest. A penalty was to be inflicted upon those who failed and they were not to stand blameless at the last day. The preaching of the gospel was to be a means to them by which they were not to perish, but bring salvation to their souls. There are many who have been sent forth who have had a fear of man, yet the Lord has promised to support them in their labors if they will trust in him. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols., Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1953, 1:220-221).
Fear is a hindrance to missionary work. Why should we fear any person in the world when we have such a great thing to give them? But it has been fear that has prevented missionaries from doing their best in the field, and you felt this when you first went out. . . . Fear is engendered by the adversary, and when we once cast aside fear and find what our potential is, that means there’s just no limitation. (Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, ed. Clyde J. Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 254).
Proclaiming the gospel is not an activity in which we periodically and temporarily engage. And our labors as missionaries certainly are not confined to the short period of time devoted to full-time missionary service in our youth or in our mature years. Rather, the obligation to proclaim the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is inherent in the oath and covenant of the priesthood into which we enter. Missionary work essentially is a priesthood responsibility, and all of us who hold the priesthood are the Lord's authorized servants on the earth and are missionaries at all times and in all places—-and we always will be. Our very identity as holders of the priesthood and the seed of Abraham is in large measure defined by the responsibility to proclaim the gospel. (David A. Bednar, “Becoming a Missionary, Conference Report, October 2005).
As you have read those early accounts, have you pictured yourself there with Peter and John as they entered the temple gate on a certain day? Before them was "a certain man lame from his mother's womb...whom [others] laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered." He saw Peter and John and asked for alms, but Peter, "fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
"And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
"Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I unto thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
"And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength." (See Acts 3:1-7.)
"Such as I have." All of us need to ponder those words. Do we, too, have something we need to share? Yes! We have the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of peace, the gospel of joy. We have truths that can make any person better and more fulfilled, any marriage happier and sweeter, any home more heavenly. We have the priesthood power of God to bless our homes and lives and the lives of others. Yes, it is to ourselves, our homes, our quorums, our classes, our church assignments that we must carry more energetically those things that we have received. And it is to our nonmember neighbors and associates that we are now asked to also "give such as we
have." The Lord has commanded us to do so. We must lengthen our stride and must do it now. (Spencer W. Kimball, "Always a Convert Church," Ensign, [September 1975]: 3).
As members of the Lord's Church, we must take missionary work more seriously. The Lord's commission to "preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15) will never change in our dispensation. We have been greatly blessed with the material means, the technology, and an inspired message to bring the gospel to all men. More is expected of us than any previous generation. Where "much is given much is required." (D&C 82:3.)(Ezra Taft Benson, CR A'85, Ensign, 15 [May 1985]: 6).
You are surrounded by people. You pass them on the street, visit them in their homes, and travel among them. All of them are children of God, your brothers and sisters. God loves them just as he loves you. Many of these people are searching for purpose in life. They are concerned for their families. They need the sense of belonging that comes from the knowledge that they are children of God, members of His eternal family. They want to feel secure in a world of changing values. They want “peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (D&C 59:23), but they are kept from the truth because they know not where to find it” (D&C 123:12.) The gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith will bless their families, meet their spiritual needs, and help them fulfill their deepest desires. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 1).
If there were no converts, the Church would shrivel and die on the vine. But perhaps the greatest reason for missionary work is to give the world its chance to hear and accept the gospel. The scriptures are replete with commands and promises and calls and rewards for teaching the gospel. I use the word "command" deliberately for it seems to be an insistent directive from which we, singly and collectively, cannot escape. (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
I ask you, what did He mean when the Lord took his Twelve Apostles to the top of the Mount of Olives and said: ‘...And ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth' (Acts 1:8). These were His last words on earth before He went to His heavenly home. What is the significance of the phrase 'uttermost most part of the earth'? He had already covered the area known to the apostles. Was it the people in Judea? Or those in Samaria? Or the few millions in the Near East? Where were the 'uttermost parts of the earth'? Did He mean the millions in what is now America? Did He include the hundreds of thousands or even millions, in Greece, Italy, around the Mediterranean, the inhabitants of central Europe? What did he mean? Or did He mean all the living people of all the world and those spirits assigned to this world to come in centuries ahead?
Have we underestimated his language or its meaning? How can we be satisfied with 100,000 converts out of nearly four billion people in the world who need the gospel? After His crucifixion the eleven apostles assembled on a mountain in Galilee and the Savior came to them and said: '...All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:' (He said 'all nations.') 'Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.' (Matthew 28:18-20). Again as Mark records the events after the resurrection, he...then commanded them, '...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.' (Mark 16:15). And this was just before the ascension. Do you think he meant Egypt and Palestine and Greece? Do you think he included the world of 33 AD or the world of 1970, 1980, 1990? What was included in his phrase 'all the world' and what did he mean by 'every creature'? And Luke records the event - '...That repentance and remission of sins should be preached...among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.' (Luke 24:47.) Again, his last command. Surely there is significance in these words! There was a universal need and there must be universal coverage... Remember also that Enoch the prophet, beheld the spirits that God had created. (See Moses 6:36). These prophets visualized the numerous spirits and all the creations. It seems to me that the Lord chose his words when he said 'every nation,' 'every land,' 'uttermost bounds of the earth,' 'every tongue,' 'every people,' 'every soul,' 'all the world,' 'many lands.' Surely there is a significance to these words! (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
Certainly his sheep were not limited to the thousands about him and with whom he rubbed shoulders each day. A universal family! A universal command! My brethren, I wonder if we are doing all we can. Are we complacent in our approach to teaching all the world? We have been proselyting now 144 years. Are we prepared to lengthen our stride? To enlarge our vision?...
Now, how can we do this? We see that there are these elements to be considered: the breaking down of resistance of the nations of the world to receive our missionaries; a greatly increased missionary force; a better trained missionary army; and better and additional methods and approaches. Now here we will consider each one in its turn. We need to enlarge our field of operation. We will need to make a full, prayerful study of the nations of the world which do not have the gospel at this time, and then bring into play our strongest and most able men to assist the Twelve to move out into the world and to open the doors of every nation as fast as it is ready (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel. (Joseph Smith, Jr., History of the Church, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978, 2:478).
All of us who have received the holy priesthood bear the sacred obligation to bless the nations and families of the earth by proclaiming the gospel and inviting all to receive by proper authority the ordinances of salvation. Many of us have served as full-time missionaries, some of us presently are serving as full-time missionaries, and all of us now are serving and will continue to serve as lifelong missionaries. We are missionaries every day in our families, in our schools, in our places of employment, and in our communities. Regardless of our age, experience, or station in life, we are all missionaries. (David A. Bednar, “Becoming a Missionary,” Conference Report, October 2005).
Missionary work has its greatest effect as people make and keep the commitment to stay active in the Church all the days of their lives. It is not enough for people to simply come into the Church. They must come to stay. All of your teaching and invitations must be directed toward this end. In order to receive all the blessings that our Heavenly Father has in store for them, members must continue to live the gospel and be active in the Church.
Nephi taught: “And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; . . . ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ . . . and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2 Nephi 31:19-20).
Give your best efforts to help people qualify for “eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God” (D&C 14:7). (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 221).
We have come to this earth upon a mission; . . . that we may have power to go forth and warn the nations of the earth. . . . As elders of Israel, very few of us fully comprehend our position, our calling, our relationship to God, our responsibility, our work the Lord requires at our hands. (The Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, sel. G. Homer Durham, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1946, p. 124).
All around the world, missionaries are responding to this testimony-driven joy in sharing the gospel. Many of them are entering the MTC with their own marked and well-studied copies of the missionary guide Preach My Gospel. I am pleased to report that with the use of Preach My Gospel, they are increasingly able to teach in their own words by the power of the Spirit and are better able to adjust their lessons to the needs of those whom they are teaching. As a result they are having meaningful impact on many lives.
But quite frankly, what they need now is more people to teach. Experience has shown that the best teaching situations develop when our members participate in the finding and teaching process. This is nothing new—you've heard it before. Some of you may even feel guilty that you are not giving much help to the missionaries. (M. Russell Ballard, “Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home,” Conference Report, April 2006).
From the beginning of this work, missionary service has been a four-step process:
1. Finding the investigator. 2. Teaching the investigator. 3. Baptizing the worthy convert. 4. Fellowshipping and strengthening the new member. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 104).
The world is our responsibility. We cannot evade it. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1986]: 42).
Our responsibility is to share the gospel. The program of the Church is vital, vibrant force in the lives of its members. We hold the conviction that this is the Church of Christ, which imposes upon us the responsibility of sharing that witness with others.(Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, ed. Clyde J. Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 248).
We are the only people to whom this holy gospel, priesthood and covenants have been committed in our day, and we shall be held responsible for the use we make of it. Then we should be diligent and faithful in offering this great salvation unto the children of men, and in building up Zion and the kingdom of our God. (Wilford Woodruff, Deseret News, 27 May 1857]: 91).
Great is our work, tremendous is our responsibility in helping to find those to teach. The Lord has laid upon us a mandate to teach the gospel to every creature. This will take the very best efforts of every [member]” (Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, [May 1999]: 107).
It is well to say here that the direct responsibility of preaching the gospel rests upon the priesthood of the Church—not upon the women, though the efficiency of the latter in cottage meetings, in Primaries, and Sunday Schools, and in other phases of missionary work, is of the highest order, and their willingness, even eagerness, to labor is not excelled by that of the young men. (David O. McKay, Gospel Ideals, Salt Lake City: Improvement Era, 1953, p. 129).
We witness in our missionary work the magnificent spectacle of young men and young women [going]...to all the ends of the earth, that by their unselfish services they stand as witnesses at all times and in all places of the divine responsibility upon the Church to teach the gospel. (Harold B. Lee, Conference Report, April 1951, 33).
If I were to couch in definite terms two of the most potent convictions in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, I would name: First, an abiding assurance that the gospel, as taught by the Redeemer when he lived among men and which was later modified, changed and corrupted by men, has been restored by the Redeemer in its purity and fulness; and second, following naturally the first, a conviction in the heart of every member of this Church that the responsibility rests upon the membership of the Church to preach the restored gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1927, 102).
We have a calling, not merely to build the Church of Christ, and to save ourselves therein, but also a commission to save the whole world. We are, as it were, set apart, consecrated for that great purpose. All of Israel must remember, every man or woman who enters the waters of baptism must keep in mind, and every child that comes into the Church must be taught that by the ordinance of baptism we accept the great and divine commission to serve the Lord in building his Church. It will then be easy to keep the commandments of God, to lay aside or meet courageously the temptations that face us. To stand alone, saying selfishly, “I have receive the gospel; it is good to be a Latter-day Saint” will not be doing our duty; but when we say, “Now, I have received this great blessing. I shall pass it on to others”; there comes the flowering in the hearts of men of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. (John A. Widtsoe, Conference Report, October 1946, p. 14).
And so, as Latter-day Saints everywhere, with personal testimonies of these great events, we accept humbly, gratefully, this major responsibility placed upon the Church. We are happy to be engaged in a partnership with our Heavenly Father in the great work of the salvation and exaltation of his children. Willingly we give of our time and our means with which he may bless us to the establishment of his kingdom in the earth. This we know is our first duty and our great opportunity. This spirit as characterized the missionary work of the church of Jesus Christ in all ages. It has been an outstanding mark of the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness of times—our time. Wherever faithful Latter-day Saints are to be found, this spirit of unselfish sacrifice for the greatest cause in all the earth exists. In a statement published to the world during the last world war, the First Presidency of the Church declared: “No act of ours or of the Church must ever interfere with this God-given mandate.” (Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, [May 1974]: 106).
Members who share the gospel experience joy and have the Spirit of the Lord more abundantly. As we share the gospel, we appreciate how precious and meaningful it is to us, and we feel a greater love for God and others. The Lord commanded His followers to preach the gospel in all the world, giving every person the opportunity to accept it or reject it. When people are baptized, they make a covenant to always stand as witnesses of God. They are commanded to share the gospel with those who have not yet received it. AS they live the gospel faithfully, they will set an example, showing their family members and friends the great blessings that come from living the gospel. They should always take advantage of opportunities to answer questions, share printed or audiovisual materials, and invite others to learn more about the message of the restored gospel. Members should pray for those who are not members of the Church. They should pray for missionary opportunities—to serve those who are not of our faith and share what they believe. The Lord promises to help members know what to say and do as they share the gospel. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 84).
Then what is our duty and our position here? The Lord through the Prophet Joseph in the beginning of this work that He was going to call Elders into the vineyard for the last time, to prune the vineyard. We have got to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. The wheat has got to be gathered into the garner before the chaff is burned. And the Elders of Israel have got to go forth and warn the inhabitants of the earth, as Joseph Smith told the Twelve Apostles the last time I saw him before his martyrdom, when he laid before us the work he was required to do. The Prophet said: “Now, you Apostles, round up your shoulders, and bear off this kingdom, or you will be damned, saith the Lord.” I do not forget these things, and they are true. I believe I am the only man living in the flesh who was present on that occasion. This is our position, brethren and sisters, before the Lord. There is a tremendous responsibility upon these Latter-day Saints. We have the world to warn. We have to preach the Gospel, and attend to those things that God has committed to us. (Wilford Woodruff, Conference Report, 9 October 1892; Deseret Weekly, 45 [9 October 1892]: 545-548).
Then we have a mission in the world, each man, each woman, each child, who has grown to understanding or to the years of accountability, ought to be examples to the world, ought, not only to be qualified to preach the truth, to bear testimony of the truth, but they ought to live so that the very life they live, the very words they speak, their every action in life, will be a sermon to the unwary and to the ignorant, teaching them goodness, purity, righteousness, faith in God and love for the human family. (Joseph F. Smith, General Conference, 6 April 1916).
What a responsibility … of leading good men and good women all over this world to know God, and to know what their mission is on earth! Fathers and mothers, fellow workers, do you fully realize today what it means to assume the responsibility of carrying the message of peace and good will to all men? (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1927, 106).
When I came into this Church, I started right out as a missionary, and took a text, and began to travel on a circuit. Truth is my text, the Gospel of salvation my subject, and the world my circuit (Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, sel. John A. Widtsoe, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1941, p. 322).
I think, many times, that we, as elders of Israel and as Latter-day Saints, come far short of realizing our position before the Lord. The work required at our hands is great and mighty; it is the work of Almighty God. We are held responsible for presenting the gospel of Christ to all the nations of the earth.... We are held responsible for all this and for building temples to the Most High, wherein we can enter and attend to ordinances for the salvation of our dead. (Wilford Woodruff, Deseret News: Semi-Weekly, [29 February 1876]: 1).
We are here for a certain purpose; the world was organized for a certain purpose; … the gospel has been introduced for a certain purpose in the different ages of time, and among the different peoples to whom it has been revealed and communicated, and we, today, are in subjection to the general rule. The Lord has led us along as he once led Israel, and as he led the Nephites from the land of Jerusalem, and the ten tribes, and other peoples, who went to different places. He has led us along, and the first thing he did with us...was to send his gospel, having revealed it first to Joseph Smith, and he, being authorized by the Almighty, and having received his appointment through the holy priesthood that exists in the heavens, and with that appointment authority to confer it upon others, did confer it upon others, and they in turn upon others, and hence the gospel was sent to us in the various nations where we resided.
And when these men went forth to proclaim this gospel, they went, as Jesus said, not to do their “will, but the will of the Father who sent them,” [see John 5:30] and to cooperate with the holy priesthood here upon the earth in introducing correct principles. Hence they went among the nations, and thousands and tens of thousands and millions listened to their testimonies; but as it was in former days, so it has been in latter days. Says Jesus—“Strait is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and few there be that find it; while wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there be that go in thereat.” [See Matthew 7:13–14.]
This has been the case in all ages and among all peoples, wherever and whenever the gospel has been preached to them. (John Taylor, Deseret News: Semi-Weekly, [9 May 1876]: 1).
We know that the first and most important duty for us is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, might, mind and strength; and second to that is love for our fellowmen. No people in all the world in proportion to their numbers, are giving such evidence of a love for their fellowmen, and a desire for their welfare, as are the Latter-day Saints. Our missionary work proclaims to all the world our willingness to make financial sacrifice and to labor with no hope of earthly reward, for the salvation of the souls of the children of our Father in heaven. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1925, p. 4).
However insignificant this people may be in the eyes of the world, the God of heaven holds us responsible for preaching this Gospel to every nation under heaven, and we have it to do or we will be damned. We cannot avoid this. Why? Because, as Paul says: “Woe is unto me, if I preach not the Gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:16). There is but one Gospel; never has been but one, and never will be; and Paul says: “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8). That Gospel, ye Saints of the living God, … is in our hands, sent to us by the ministrations of Angels—the same Gospel that was taught from Adam to Christ, and from Christ down to our day and generation, when God has had a people on the earth. (Wilford Woodruff, Millennial Star, [28 November 1895]: 755).
Invite missionaries to present the first lesson to your family in your home. Better yet, invite neighbors to come to your home to be taught by missionaries. Guided by the Spirit, in their own words they will explain how Father in Heaven has used prophets throughout the ages to communicate His plan of happiness to His children. Feel their testimony as they bear witness of the sublime vision in which God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph Smith. They will skillfully unfold the subsequent events that restored the fulness of the gospel, with the authority to act in the name of God, on earth again. You can also accompany missionaries as they teach others these inspiring truths. Your presence will greatly strengthen those who hear these precious truths for the first time. (Richard G. Scott, “The Power of Preach My Gospel,” Ensign, [May 2005]: 29.)
No sooner had the Saints become fairly settled in these valleys than the servants of the Lord turned their attention again to the great missionary work which rested upon the Church.
We were in the midst of poverty and struggling to make the land habitable, but we could not neglect the obligation we were under to spread the gospel abroad; for the Lord had given forth the command that it should be preached in all the world. It is one of the evidences of the divinity of this work that in the midst of all their driving and persecutions the Latter-day Saints have faithfully sought to carry out this command of the Lord. (Lorenzo Snow, The Teachings of Lorenzo Snow, compiled by Clyde Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984, p. 65).
There are numerous people in the world who are hungering for the Lord and for his word. They are thirsting for associations with the Lord, and yet they neither know exactly what they are hungering for nor what will quench their thirst. It is your responsibility and mine to take this message of the gospel to them.
One of the highest forms of Christian service is to share the gospel, because with its acceptance come so many other blessings.
Our work covers this great need, desire, and obsession is to bring to the people of this world the candle of understanding, to light the way out of obscurity and darkness.
This calls for two elements. One is proselyting, and the other is fellowshipping. (Spencer W. Kimball, "Report of the Regional Representatives’ Seminar," Ensign, [November 1976]: 140).
When we come into the Church, we covenant in the waters of baptism that we will do missionary work. We enter into a solemn contract with Deity that we will bear testimony of the restoration of the gospel on every appropriate occasion. We agree "to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all place" that we "may be in, even until death," (Mosiah 18:9). We are also bound by the command that the Lord has given by revelation in this day, that "It becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor" (D&C 88:81). Thus we have an affirmative, positive, definite obligation resting upon us to do missionary work. This matter of carrying the gospel message to the world is not something that we can choose to do or not, if and when we may find it to be convenient. We are under covenant to do it "at all times...and in all places...even until death" (Mosiah 18:9). (Bruce R. McConkie, Conference Report, April 1965, pp. 54-55).
The duty which devolves upon us as a people is to patiently labor in disseminating the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the nations of the earth. . . . This is our duty; and this Gospel of the Kingdom, as we have been told, must be preached as a witness unto all nations before the end comes. It is a labor devolving upon us as a people; and though it may cost many precious lives to do this, the obligation rests upon us nevertheless, and we cannot be freed from it only by the discharge of the duty. (George Q. Cannon, Millennial Star 21 [22 January 1898]: 115).
The Church, being the kingdom of God on earth, has a mission to all nations.
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).
These words from the lips of the Master know no national boundaries; they are not limited to any race or culture. One nation is not favored above another. The admonition is clear—“teach all nations.” (Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, compiled by Clyde Williams. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 245).
We have attained the stature and strength that are enabling us to fulfill the commission given us by the Prophet Joseph Smith that we should carry the glad tidings of the restoration to every nation and to all people.
And not only shall we preach in every nation before the second coming of the Son of Man, but we shall make converts and establish congregations of Saints among them. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Manchester Area Conference, 1971, p. 5).
Our lives are not our own. So much of others have gone into the making of all of us, into teaching, into training, into all that we have inherited, into all that God has given, and especially, above all, the gospel. Earnestly we have an obligation to share it with others. (Richard L. Evans, Conference Report, April 1961, p. 76).
One of the very first revelations that was given by our heavenly Father, as contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, reads as follows:
“Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men. Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day” (D&C 4:1-2).
Now, I do not understand that we are serving God with all our might if we forsake his children, or if we spend so much of our time selfishly building up ourselves, accumulating things of this life, and leave his children in darkness, when we could bring them into the light. My understanding is that the most important mission that I have in this life is: first, to keep the commandments of God, as they have been taught me; and next, to teach them to my Father’s children who do not understand them. It makes little difference, when I go to the other side, whether I have been a man of wealth in this world or not, unless I have used that wealth to bless my fellow men. Though I be a wanderer in this world, and suffer for the necessities of life, if by reason of the knowledge that my Father has given me, I devote myself to the instruction of his children, to planting faith in their hearts, to dissipating the errors that have come to them by tradition. I believe when I go to the other side that I will find there a bank account that will be beyond compare with what I would have, if I lived for the things of the earth alone. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1950, pp. 50-51).
We as a people have one supreme thing to do, and that is to call upon the world to repent of sin, to come to God. And it is our duty above all others to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the restoration again to the earth of the plan of life and salvation. . . . We have in very deed the pearl of great price. We have that which is of more value than all the wealth and scientific information which the world possesses. We have the plan of life and salvation. . . . The best way in the world to show love for our neighbor is to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of which he has given us an absolute knowledge concerning its divinity. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1927, pp. 175-176).
The world is hungry to hear the truth as never before in its history. We have it. Are we equal to the task—to the responsibility God has placed upon us? (David O. McKay, Conference Report, October 1945, 113–114).
As apostles, seventies, elders, priests, etc., we are accountable to the Most High God. If we do our duty, then our skirts will be clean. We are watchmen upon the walls of Zion. It is our duty to warn the inhabitants of the earth of the things that are to come, and if they reject our testimony, then their blood will come upon their own heads. When the judgments of God overtake the wicked they cannot say they have not been warned. My garments, and the garments of thousands of others, are clean of the people of this generation, as also the garments of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and those of the elders of Israel who have died in the faith. We have borne our testimony, and when the judgments of God come, men cannot say they have not been warned. (Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-day Book Depot, 1855-1886, 21:283).
We have a mission in the world: each man, each woman, each child who has grown to understanding or to the years of accountability, ought. . .to be qualified to preach the truth, to bear testimony of the truth. (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine 13th ed. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968, pp. 251-252).
When we truly understand how great a blessing the gospel of Jesus Christ is in our lives, when we accept and embrace these eternal truths and allow them to sink deep into our hearts and souls, we experience a "mighty change" (Alma 5:14) in our hearts.
We are filled with love and gratitude. As the prophet Alma wrote, we feel "to sing the song of redeeming love" (Alma 5:26) to all who will hear it.
"O, that I were an angel," Alma said, "and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!
"Yea, I would declare unto every soul. . .the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth" (Alma 29:1–2).
So it should be with us, my brothers and sisters. Our love for the Lord and appreciation for the Restoration of the gospel are all the motivation we need to share what gives us much joy and happiness. It is the most natural thing in the world for us to do, and yet far too many of us are hesitant to share our testimonies with others. (M. Russell Ballard, “Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home,” Conference Report, April 2006).
How will I feel, or you, when called before the judgment seat, if someone shall point his finger at me, or you, and say that "if it had not been for the actions of this man or this group I would have received the truth; but I was blinded because they, professing to have the light, did not live it. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church News, [16 June 1934]: 4).
I want to emphasize that we as a people have one supreme thing to do and that is to call upon the world to repent of sin, to come to God. And it is our duty above all others to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the restoration again to the earth of the plan of life and salvation.... We have in very deed the pearl of great price. We have that which is of more value than all the wealth and the scientific information which the world possesses. We have the plan of life and salvation. The first great commandment was to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, might, mind, and strength; and the second was like unto it, to love our neighbors as ourselves. And the best way in the world to show our love for our neighbor is to go forth and proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of which he has given us an absolute knowledge concerning its divinity. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1927, pp. 175-176).
I remember that in revelation after revelation given just before the Church was organized, and in its early days, that men came to the man whom God had chosen as his prophet, and asked that he inquire of the Lord what was the most important labor for them to perform. Uniformly, the answer came that the greatest and most profitable labor in which they could engage was to bring souls to a knowledge of the gospel. (Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, October 1916, p. 32).
Now, we are a busy people; but the Lord did not say, "If it is convenient for you, would you consider preaching the gospel." He has said, "Let every man learn his duty" (D&C 107:99) and "Behold...it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor (D&C 88:81)."
We must remember that God is our ally in this. He is our help. He will open the way, for he gave the commandment.
We are sometimes tempted with Habakkuk to cry, "O Lord, how long shall I cry," for many do not hear” (Habakkuk 1:2). And then we remember the Lord's reply to Habakkuk, "I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you" (1:5).
The day for carrying the gospel to ever more places, to ever more people, is here. Are we ready for the call? With Nephi we must say anew, "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (1 Nephi 3:7). (Spencer W. Kimball, "Are We Doing All We Can?" Ensign, [February 1983]: 3-4).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives." He further declared: "I think every member of the Church has the capacity to teach the gospel to nonmembers. I was told the other day of a crippled woman, homebound, who spends her days in a wheelchair, who has been the means of bringing thirty-seven people into the Church. . . We need an awareness, an everyday awareness of the great power that we have to do this thing. Second, a desire. . . I am as satisfied as I am of anything that with that kind of prayerful, conscientious, directed effort, there isn't a man in this Church who could not convert another. . . Third, the faith to try. It is so simple. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Ready to Harvest." Improvement Era, [July 1961]: 508).
The responsibility of the Church is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ as restored to the Prophet Joseph Smith, not only to preach it and proclaim it by word, by distribution of literature, but more than anything else by living the gospel in our homes and in our business dealings, having faith and testimony in our hearts, and radiating it wherever we go....There is nothing that can stop the progress of truth excepting only our weaknesses or failure to do our duty. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, Oct. 1969, 88–89).
You know President McKay established the rule: “Every member a missionary.” But now I wish we could reestablish that in the hearts of all the members of the Church all over the world, every member. If a person is old enough to be a member, he is old enough to be a missionary; and he doesn’t need to be set apart especially for that calling. He can just go out and proselyte and bring people to the Church. (Spencer W. Kimball, Fiji Area Conference, [February 1976]: 11).
I wish I could awaken in the heart of every man, woman, boy, and girl here this morning the great consuming desire to share the gospel with others. If you do that you live better, you try to make your lives more exemplary because you know that those you teach will not believe unless you back up what you say by the goodness of your lives. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Alaska Anchorage Regional Conference, 18 June 1995).
I do not believe there was ever a generation of men who inhabited the earth who were more wicked, or who were practicing greater abominations, or who were sinning against greater light and knowledge, or who had a greater flood of judgments proclaimed against them by the word of the Lord, than the generation in which we live. Therefore, as Saints of the living God, who bear the Holy Priesthood, we shall be under condemnation if we do not lift up the warning voice against the evils and abominations which exist, so far as we have opportunity. (Wilford Woodruff, Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, sel. G. Homer Durham, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1946, p. 228).
These...missionaries [are] scattered throughout the world, and yet that is not a drop in the bucket, but in the Lord's own way, and he says it will be done by those that he directs, all the people of the world must be reached if possible and the gospel of Jesus Christ brought to them as far as we can go. So we have a great responsibility, my brethren, a tremendous responsibility. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1950, pp. 174-175).
That is your mission, my brethren and sisters of the Church, that is your responsibility. Freely you have received and our Heavenly Father will expect you freely to share with His other sons and daughters these glorious truths. (George Albert Smith, Sharing the Gospel with Others, Preston Nibley sel., Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1948, p. 213).
The injunction of the Lord to missionaries is clear. You are to warn the inhabitants of the world. You are to declare vigorously the gospel message in simplicity and plainness. You are to seek humbly and earnestly for every honest-hearted soul, and strive diligently to teach him the truth and help bring him into the Church. (The First Presidency: David O. McKay, J. Reuben Clark, Jr., Henry D. Moyle, 12 April 1961).
As agents of the Lord we are not called or authorized to teach the philosophies of the world or the speculative theories of our scientific age. Our mission is to preach the doctrines of salvation in plainness and simplicity as they are revealed and recorded in scripture.
After directing us to teach the principles of the gospel found in the standard works, as guided by the Spirit, the Lord then made that great pronouncement which governs all the teaching of His gospel by anyone in the Church, “And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach.” (D&C 42:14). (Joseph Fielding Smith, Conference Report, 2 October 1970).
Now I would counsel you young men as you enter your missionary service to forget the mysteries. Speaking of the mysteries reminds me of the man who got up to talk and said, “I will now proceed to expound upon that which the Lord has not yet seen fit to reveal!” Mysteries include those matters that are speculative. They are things which have not been revealed or are beyond our understanding. It is the plain, simple truth confirmed by the Spirit that converts when accompanied by the testimony of a humble servant of the Lord. (James E. Faust, Conference Report, April 1996).
The Lord has placed upon us the responsibility to preach the gospel, but there is another great responsibility. I think some of our missionaries have had an idea that all we had to do was to make friends, and if they wanted to come in the Church, well and good, and the missionaries have not realized that they were under the obligation to leave a warning, and it is just as necessary that we warn the world as it is to declare the way of eternal life. The Lord said to the missionaries who went out in the early days:
"That ye may be prepared in all things when I shall send you again to magnify the calling were unto I have called you, and the mission with which I have commissioned you.
"Behold, I send you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.
"Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads." (D&C 88:80-82.)
Every missionary who goes out should see to it that he leaves his testimony, so that he will be free as the Lord has declared he should be in section four of the Doctrine and Covenants; and so that every man with whom he comes in contact should be warned and left without excuse, and thus the blood of every man be upon his own head. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Conference Report, April 1946, p. 158).
From now on, brethren, we expect that every year there will be a great increase in conversions and baptisms. . . .Our most important goal is to bring the gospel to all people. We must convert more people. We must find ways and means. (Spencer W. Kimball, Regional Representatives’ Seminar, 3 April 1975, p. 6).
It follows that every member of he Church, whether man or woman, may be called to go on a mission for the upbuilding of his fellowmen. In harmony with the law of free agency, it is voluntary with the individual whether he accept or refuse the call. The practice in the Church is that those who accept missionary calls go at their own expense, on a term mission, varying in length, but usually not more than two years. The missionaries of the Church not only assist the members already gathered into the Church, but they travel over the world, preaching the everlasting Gospel, and bringing others who accept the truth into the Church. The purpose of he Church missionary system is to preach the Gospel to all members of the human race, so that, as far as possible, none may be left with the excuse that he has not heard the Gospel. (John A. Widtsoe, A Rational Theology, 4th ed. rev., Salt Lake City: Desert Book, 1937, pp. 123-124).
There is nothing that any of you could do for the time and season of your missionary appointments which would be as important as the work that lies ahead of you...We are all called to raise the warning voice to invite men to forsake the world, and come unto Christ and gain all of the blessings of the gospel. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Improvement Era, [September 1970]: 13).
There is only one day that you and I have to live for, and that's today. There is nothing we can do about yesterday except repent, and there may be no tomorrow. The thing for us to do when we arise from our beds as God gives us a new day, is to take whatever comes to our hands, and do it to the best of our ability. (Harold B. Lee, cited in The Missionary's Little Quote Book, compiled by R. Dale Jeffrey, American Fork, Utah : Covenant Communications, 1997).
You may be able to teach some investigators in a few visits; others may require more visits. You have the flexibility to teach the lessons in whatever way best helps people full prepare for their baptism and confirmation. Your purpose is not only to cover the material; it is to help others come unto Christ through faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 72).
The missionary process is fourfold: (1) finding the investigator, (2) teaching the investigator, (3) baptizing the worthy convert, (4) fellowshipping the new member....It is important that 5 years from now, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, the man or the woman whom you baptized is an active and faithful and devoted and worthy member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Gordon B. Hinckley, Missionary meeting, Houston, Texas, 20 September 1998).
Therefore, ye elders of Israel, and young men who are in the vineyard of the Lord, or who dwell in Zion, prepare yourselves the whole armor of God, and bear a true and faithful testimony unto all people where providence may call you, that your garments may be clean from the blood of all men, for the eyes of all the heavenly hosts of God, angels and men, are watching over you with the feelings of the deepest interest. You are called and ordained of God to prepare this great and mighty work for the coming of the Son of Man. (Wilford Woodruff, "Encouragement to the Elders," Contributor [July 1884]: 394).
Former investigators are a valuable source for finding people to teach. There are many reasons why people stop investigating the Church. Reasons include missionaries being transferred, missionaries stopping visits even though investigators are still expecting visits, and investigators believing that the missionaries have nothing new to teach them. Many former investigators say they would meet with missionaries again.
Review your area book often to identify former investigators. Prayerfully reflect on the information in the area book concerning how the investigators first came in contact with the Church, what have they been taught, how they have responded, and why they quit investigating the gospel. If members have been involved in teaching and fellowshipping the former investigators, ask the members what they remember about the experience. Based on this information, make plans to contact the investigators again.
If someone you are teaching chooses to discontinue their investigation of the gospel, record information in the area book that will be helpful for the missionaries who will contact them in the future. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 166).
Neither God nor angels look to any other people than the Latter-Day Saints--the elders of Israel, the young men of Zion, to go forth bearing the Holy Priesthood, to warn this Christian, Gentile generation with the gospel of Jesus Christ of the judgments which are to come; and their testimony will prove a savor of life unto life or of death unto death to all who hear it. (Wilford Woodruff, "Encouragement to Elders," Contributor [July 1884]: 394).
No man can do a bigger thing, nor a better thing in this world, than to save his fellow men. (Stephen L. Richards, Conference Report, October 1918).
We have the obligation of spreading the gospel to the world. This responsibility of missionary work is yours, so prepare yourself to take advantage of your opportunities. (Joseph Fielding Smith, LDS International Explorer Conference, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, 23 August 1963).
If the people of the world knew what we had to offer them, there would be seven billion hands raised to ask us. You're going out to do the most sacred, the most important duty the Lord can give to man. (Spencer W. Kimball, Improvement Era, [September 1970]: 13).
Although our numbers are increasing rapidly, each of us must labor continually at missionary work, whether by our example of Christ-like living or by actually proselyting and teaching the principles of the gospel.
I am reminded of an experience I had while I was in Canada. I worked side by side for a number of years with a man who was not a member of the Church. I had been reluctant to approach the subject of religion for fear of putting a strain on our friendly relationship. But finally I felt impressed to see if he were interested in learning about Mormonism and the gospel of Jesus Christ. He expressed interest and immediately thereafter he and his wife attended Sunday services with us. They, with their children, soon joined the Church, and they have indeed made a great contribution in time and talent. The parents have just returned from presiding over a mission, and the children have made contributions in various areas of service, and some have filled missions. What a loss to the Church if I had neglected my responsibilities to tell them the good news of the gospel message!
On one occasion when he chastised me for waiting so long before telling him about the Church and thus keeping his family from enjoying the blessings of the gospel, I determined that would not happen again and that I would be more aware of who I was and act accordingly. (N. Eldon Tanner, "Remember Who You Are," Ensign, [January 1983]: 3-4).
I wonder if we are doing all we can. Are we complacent in our approach to teaching all the world? Are we prepared to lengthen our stride? To enlarge our vision?
Remember our ally is our God. He is our commander. He made the plans. He gave the commandment. (Spencer W. Kimball, Regional Representatives’ Seminar, 4 April 1974).
It should be the duty of the elder to stand up boldly for the cause of Christ, and warn the people with one accord to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins, and for the Holy Ghost; always commanding them in the name of the Lord in the spirit of meekness. (Joseph Smith, Jr., History of the Church, Salt Lake City, Deseret Book Co., 1978, 2:262).
We all share this great responsibility. We cannot avoid it. Let no man or woman think that because of where we live or because of our place in society or because of our occupation or status, we are exempt from this responsibility. (Ezra Taft Benson, Come Unto Christ, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983, p. 91).
My understanding is that the most important mission that I have in this life is: first, to keep the commandments of God, as they have been taught to me; and next, to teach them to my Father's children who do not understand them. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1916, p. 50).
Do we realize that every man is in the image of God and is a son of God and every woman his daughter? No matter where they may be, they are his children, and he loves them and desires their salvation. Surely as members of this Church we cannot sit idly by. We cannot receive the beneficent favor of our Heavenly Father that is bestowed upon us, the knowledge of eternal life, and selfishly retain it, thinking that we may be blessed thereby. It is not what we receive that enriches our lives, it is what we give. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1935, p. 46).
Just as the Lord called his servant Abraham to serve as a missionary 4,000 years age, so is he calling the Saints today. We must all be missionaries and prepare our sons to be full-tine missionaries. Those who have made even a slight effort to share the gospel can testify of the joy they find through sharing it with their earthly brothers and sisters. Our efforts to spread the gospel have been feeble; we must do more. Like Abraham, we must declare the gospel to the world, not stopping with a vocal declaration, but living the gospel so others can see the truth. (Spencer W. Kimball, "The Example of Abraham," Ensign, [June 1975]: 6).
There never was a set of men since God made the world under a stronger responsibility to warn this generation, to lift up our voices long and loud, day and night so far as we have the opportunity and declare the words of God unto this generation. We are required to do this. This is our calling. It is our duty. It is our business. (Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 21:122).
I further wish to state to the Twelve and to the seventies, and to the elders that they are not responsible for the reception or the rejection by the world of that word which God has given to them to communicate. It is proper for them to use all necessary diligence and fidelity, and plainly and intelligently, and with prayer and faith to go forth as messengers to the nations, as the legates of the skies, clothed upon with authority from the God of heaven, even the authority of the Holy Priesthood,...and when they have performed their labors and fulfilled their duties, their garments are free from the blood of this generation, and the people are then left in the hands of God their Heavenly Father. For the people...will be responsible to God for their rejection of the gospel and not to us. (John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 7 October 1883, 24:289).
You heard the Elders. They told you they had been sent by God and that they had the fullness of the Gospel to offer to man, and they explained to you the principles thereof. They told you there was but one Gospel, and that God had never revealed but the one, the Gospel that Paul referred to when he said: “Though we, or an angel from heaven preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” You believed and obeyed, and gathered with the Saints. (Wilford Woodruff, Conference Report, 6 October 1889; Deseret Weekly, 39 [4 October 1889]: 418).
I warn you this day that the Lord holds us responsible to call his children to repentance and for the promulgation of his truth. If we fail to take advantage of our opportunities to teach the sons and daughters of God, who are not of our faith, who dwell in our midst, this gospel of our Lord, he will require at our hands on the other side of the veil what we have failed to do, so let us not be recreant. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1916, p. 48).
The Lord said to Ezekiel, "I have made thee a watchman unto the House of Israel. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul." [3:17.] This is precisely our condition today. As Apostles, seventies, high priests, and elders, we and all men who bear any portion of the Holy Priesthood, are watchmen upon the walls of Zion and messengers to all the inhabitants of the earth, and all of us will be held responsible if we do not improve our time and lift the warning voice, as far as we have opportunity, and warn this generation of the judgments of God which await them. (Wilford Woodruff, Millennial Star, 48:803).
As far as I am concerned, there is nothing I can do for the time and season of this mortal probation that is more important than to use all my strength, energy, and ability in spreading and perfecting the cause of truth and righteousness. (Bruce R. McConkie, "Think on These Things," Ensign, [January 1974]: 47).
Our duty is to preach the gospel to all men. Who, the First Presidency? Yes, if there is nobody else. The Twelve? Yes, it is their special calling to preach it themselves or see that it is preached to all the world. And, then, the seventies, it is their duty to go forth at the drop of the hat, as minute men, to preach the gospel to all nations, under the guidance of the Twelve. And, then, it is for those who are in Zion, the high priests and others, to go and preach the gospel. (John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, London: Latter-Day Saints Book Depot, 1855-1886, 26:110).
Our most important obligation...is to divide with our Father's children all those fundamental truths, all his rules and regulations which prepare us for eternal life known as the gospel of Jesus Christ. Until we have done that to the full limit of our power, we will not receive all the blessings which we might otherwise have. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, October 1945, p. 119).
We contemplate the human race, past, present, and yet to come, as immortal beings, for whose salvation it is our mission to labor; and to this work, broad as eternity and deep as the love of God, we devote ourselves, now and forever. (The First Presidency: Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, Anthon H. Lund, An Address of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to the World, April 1907).
We ask those of you who are not yet members of the Church to be patient of we seem too anxious to share what we have. If we do not share it, we may lose it. That is one of the requirements of we are to keep it. Therefore, missionary work is not casual, it is very determined. (Boyd K. Packer, "Where Much is Given, Much is Required," Ensign, [November 1974]: 87).
I have unbounded confidence and faith in you, our young brethren. You are the warriors of the Restoration. And in this spiritual battle, you are to relieve the spiritual hunger and feed the sheep. It is your duty!
We have the fullness of the everlasting gospel. We have the obligation to share it with those who do not have it. God grant that we will honor that commission from the Lord and prepare ourselves and answer the call. (Boyd K. Packer, CR A'84, Ensign, [May 1984]: 43).
Some time ago, as the General Authorities met together on a upper floor of the temple, President Kimball stood and instructed us, saying: "Brethren, of late I have been concerned and troubled by the fact that we do not have sufficient missionaries proclaiming the message of the Restoration. I hear some parents say, 'We hope our son fills a mission because it would be such a growing experience for him.'"
He continued: "I have heard some young men say, 'I think I might serve a mission if I really want to go.'" President Kimball raised his voice, stood on tiptoe--as he is prone to do when anxious to communicate with power a special thought--and said: "It doesn't really matter whether Mother or Father thinks it might be nice for a son to serve a mission. It doesn't really matter whether or not John, Bill, and Bob want to go--they must go!" President Kimball then proceeded to point out the missionary obligation each of us has, to repay the sacrifice and service of those missionaries who left home and family and brought the gospel to our parents or grandparents in lands near and far.
I love to read my own grandfather's missionary journal. His first entries are classics. He wrote: "Today I married in the Salt Lake Temple the girl of my dreams." The very next night the journal entry read: "Tonight the bishop called at our house. I have been asked to return to Scandinavia for a two-year mission. Of course I will go, and my sweet wife will remain at home and sustain me." I am grateful for a missionary heritage. (Thomas S. Monson, CR O'84, Ensign, [November 1984]: 41).
Because the gospel is the most important thing in this or any world, because we alone have this power of God unto salvation, and because it is for all men, the Lord has commanded us to go forth. . . "in solemnity and the spirit of prayer, in bearing testimony to all the world of those things which are communicated unto" us. (D&C 84:61).
His word, not to those of a former day, but to us, is: "Go ye into all the world;... that the testimony may go from you into all the world unto every creature." (D&C 84:62.)
By his own mouth he has promised us: "Every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost." (D&C 84:64.)
Also from his own mouth we hear this awesome truth: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, they who believe not my on your words, and are not baptized in water in my name, for the remission of their sins, that they may receive the Holy Ghost, shall be damned, and shall not come into my Father's kingdom where my Father and I am.
"And this revelation unto you, and commandment, is in force from this very hour upon all the world, and the gospel is unto all who have not received it." (D&C 84:74-74.)
From what source shall the world receive the gospel? From what fountain shall they drink to receive that water which quenches eternal thirst? These words contain the Lord's answer: "Verily I say unto all those to whom the kingdom has been given--from you it must be preached unto them." (D&C 84:76.)
Who carries the message of salvation to the world? Who is responsible to do missionary work? Whose voice do our Father's other children hear, inviting them to keep every true principle they now possess, but to receive the added light and knowledge that has come by the opening of the heavens in our day?
The Lord's answer is: "All those to whom the kingdom has been given." This is not a work reserved for Apostles and prophets alone. It is not restricted to seventies and those called on missions.
The genius of the heaven-sent system is that it involves all of the Saints. It will take all of us, plus the converts yet unmade, and our children and our children's children, to raise the warning voice in the ears of all of them. (Bruce R. McConkie, "Let the Word Go Forth," Ensign, [February 1985]: 72-73).
It should be the aim of all the members of the Church to carry out practically in their lives the principles of the Gospel. In no way can we better convince the world of their truth than in showing in our acts and dealings with one another and with mankind the elevating effect they have upon us. We make high professions, and there should be such a high standard of purity of life among us as to correspond with these professions. (Wilford Woodruff, “An Epistle to the Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Millennial Star, [14 November 1887]: 729).
Alma tells us that we make a covenant in the waters of baptism to serve the Lord and keep his commandments. One of the express provisions of this covenant is a solemn promise on our part "to stand as witnesses of God"--meaning both the Father and the Son—"at all times and in all things, and in all places that [we] may be in, even until death." This, Alma says, is required of us, if we are to "be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that [we] may have eternal life." (Mosiah 18:9).
Being thus under covenant to testify of Christ and his gospel everywhere and at all times, as long as we breathe the breath of life, it comes as no surprise to hear the Divine Voice say to each of us:
"I sent you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor.
"Therefore, they are left without excuse, and their sins are upon their own heads." (D&C 88:81-82.)
I leave with each of you the problem of determining upon whose heads their sins will rest if we fail to raise the warning voice.
To raise the warning voice is to preach the gospel; it is to set forth the plan of salvation; it is to teach that sins are remitted by baptism; it is to testify that all who believe and obey shall be saved and that those who reject and disobey shall be damned.
What a warning that is--a warning to forsake the world or suffer the desolations and plagues, both temporal and spiritual, that shall fall upon the ungodly in the coming days.
Thus it is that we--meaning every member of the kingdom who has arrived at the age of accountability--have a divinely imposed duty, a revealed responsibility, an overriding obligation to proclaim the message of the restoration to the world. it is a divine appointment, lighted as a fire by the power of the Spirit, that should burn as a holy fire in our hearts at all times.
Orson Pratt baptized one of my great grandfathers in Scotland. I thereby inherited the blessings of the gospel by being born under the covenant. Is there any way I can repay those who brought the gospel to me, except by taking it in turn to others whose souls are equally precious in the sight of Him who is no respecter of persons?
Those of us who hold the holy priesthood--all of us, elders, seventies, high priests, patriarchs, and Apostles--have an additional responsibility, because of our calls to be ministers of Christ, to go forth and preach the gospel "as with the voice of a trump." Unto all who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood this world has come from the Lord: "And now this calling and commandment give I unto you concerning all men--
"That as many as shall" receive the gospel and the priesthood "shall be ordained and sent forth to preach the everlasting gospel among the nations. . .
And this commandment shall be given unto the elders of my church, that every man which will embrace it with singleness of heart may be ordained and sent forth, even as I have spoken." (D&C 36:1, 4-5, 7). (Bruce R. McConkie, "Let the Word Go Forth," Ensign, [February 1985]: 73).
The safety of the Church in generations ahead rests on our success in calling missionaries. If we have concern for the future of this work, we will not rest until every able-bodied young man is made worthy and desires to receive a call to a mission.
Now, I only mentioned in the beginning the matter that we are commanded to preach the gospel. We're commanded to preach whether there is any extra benefits and blessings to it or not. Why? It is our duty! That is a principle, a commanding principle!
Procedures and programs and policies and organization and budgets and buildings are important in their place. These we must do, but we must not leave the weightier matters undone.
We must move forward. We could open six new missions right now if we had the missionaries. So our counsel and instruction to all leaders is to move forward, to renew with great urgency the calling of young men and a lesser but sufficient number of young sisters, to go forth to preach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people in answer to the commandment that we have been given. (Boyd K. Packer, "Principles," Ensign, [March 1985]: 10).
Well, I believe that the Lord is waiting for us to move. I think the Lord is sitting there on his throne and is saying, "Whenever those good people down there catch the vision, I am going to bless them as they have never seen blessings or heard of them. But as long as they are content and they are satisfied to send a few of their boys and a few of them go on missions themselves, a few of them give a few hundred dollars, a thousand dollars to the missionary program, as long as they are content to just go right on as they have been doing for a long while, well, there is not much use of me, their Lord, to open the doors if nobody wants to go through them. Why open a gate? Everybody's standing out here not daring to move in." (Spencer W. Kimball, Address Spokane, Washington, 24 July 1974).
We are happy to be engaged in a partnership with our Heavenly Father in the great work of the salvation and exaltation of His children. Willingly we give of our time and the means with which He may bless us to the establishment of His kingdom in the earth. This we know is our first duty and our great opportunity. This spirit has characterized the missionary work of the Church of Jesus Christ in all ages. It has been an outstanding mark of the ushering in of the dispensation of the fullness of times--our time. Wherever faithful Latter-day Saints are to be found, this spirit of unselfish sacrifice for the greatest cause in all the earth exists. In a statement published to the world during the last world war, the First Presidency of the Church declared: "No act of ours or of the Church must interfere with this God-given mandate." (Conference Report, April 1942, p. 91). (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, pp. 49-50).
With renewed emphasis, let us urge missionary service as well as help to missionaries as a duty and a responsibility. The mandate of the Lord is upon us. It is our responsibility to carry the gospel to the people of the earth. Marvelous things are happening. Yet more wonderful things can be brought to pass. May we be faithful in building the kingdom we love and in doing the will of Him who is our Savior and who commanded us to teach the gospel.
At this time of the year, when the thoughts of so many turn to the birth and life of the Lord and the sharing of gifts, let us each do something to share the greatest gift we can give anyone--the gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let each of us participate in missionary service in some way at this Christmas season. Let us be bearers of love and peace to all mankind. (Gordon B. Hinckley, "The Field is White Already to Harvest," Ensign, [December 1986]: 6).
There are at least twenty-seven sections of the Doctrine and Covenants that refer to missionary work. The first great responsibility placed upon this Church in our day was to carry this message to the world. It is still a major responsibility. It is going on here on earth and it is going on in greater volume on the other side, and whether you do it here or over there doesn't make very much difference, just so long as you are missionaries. If you are laboring as you should, if you love this work, you will be engaged in helping to save the souls of the children of man throughout eternity until they have all heard it. And so it is the greatest work in all the world. There isn't anything like it in magnitude, in importance, in size, in promise. (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, p. 66).
No person can read Section One of the Doctrine and Covenants, realizing that the Church accepts it as the word of the Lord, and ask why we send missionaries into all parts of the world. The responsibility, and a major one it is, falls squarely upon the membership of the Church, for "the voice of warning," says the Lord, "shall be unto all people by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days" (D&C 1:4). (Ezra Taft Benson, God, Family, Country, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974, p. 48).
Evangelistic harvest is always urgent. The destiny of man and of nations is always being decided. Every generation is crucial; every generation is strategic. We may not be responsible for past generations, but we cannot escape full responsibility for this one, and we have our time and our generation and our missionaries and our great potential. (Spencer W. Kimball, Mission Presidents’ Seminar, 27 June 1974).
We are indebted, each of us individually, to the missionaries who brought the gospel to us or to our ancestors; many of us owe these missionaries more than we owe anyone else. We received from them the pearl of great price. We have an obligation to discharge our debt, and one of the very best ways in which we can do this is to go forth ourselves as missionaries, or otherwise to use our talents and our means to see that others of our Father's children have the opportunity to receive that which has been restored in this day. (Bruce R. McConkie, Conference Report, April 1965, p. 55).
The responsibility of preaching the gospel rests upon us. When the people in Macedonia called to Paul, and the spirit told him to go over, he answered the call. They are calling for us; various nations, they are calling for more missionaries now in the missions already established, and we must answer the call. (David O. McKay, Conference Report, April 1953, p. 59).
I have been all over the world...and I've preached the gospel to a great many people. I've been among the Indians in the Southwest; I have been among the Indians in India. I have been all over the country, and I have preached the gospel and borne my testimony to people all over the world.
I remember when we had only six or eight hundred missionaries in all the world. Now we have twenty-three thousand, approximately. I remember when my people who were approached to go on missions would say, "I can't go, I've got so many cows, and I’ve got so many acres. I've got so much to do."
I know and I am finding out that where there is a will there is a way, and the Lord can help us find the ways to teach. Now it is quite obvious that twenty-three thousand missionaries is nothing. It is just a drop in the bucket when we talk about four billion people. Even if we talk about only the people of Sydney, if we had all our missionaries right here in Sydney, we would probably not get around to all the people here.
Now I hope to see the day when a great army of Australian boys go across the Pacific and go down to South America. I am looking forward to the day when a great army of your sons may cross the Indian Ocean and go to India and Burma and the other nations in that area. it is not easy, because of their doctrines, because of their way of life. It isn't easy.
We are going to have to have a lot of help and I am convinced since the Lord is the one who said you have to go and do it, he will be able to open the gates for us. To that end we have asked all the people of the whole world to include in their family prayers and in their Church prayers always to ask the Lord to open the gates, open the doors so that the people can be proselyted and taught the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Now unfortunately that is what we are up against. If you have faith, if I have faith, faith enough to keep asking the Lord, I am positive the day will come when the gates will be opened. They will say, "Here, here are a lot of visas take them and use them."
Whenever I visit a foreign country and talk to the people there who are in charge of the government, I always mention to them, "You know, these missionaries are the best ambassadors that you have ever had or ever will have. These young men who come to Australia, these young men who go to New Zealand, these who go to Japan-they are the best people for the country, the very, very best. They will always be good ambassadors." Have you ever noticed a group of missionaries talking about their missionary service? They talk about Sister so-and-so being baptized and Brother so-and-so joining the Church, and they always say good things about the nation...
I don't see any reason why we couldn't send Australian boys all over the East. I don't see why we couldn't send them all over the south, South America. However, the South Americans are doing a tremendous job there, turning in a great many missionaries.
Now that is what we are asking you to do. Will you brethren pledge with yourself tonight that you just will not have anymore prayers without this suggestion in them to the Lord: "Oh, how we need your help. Help us find the way to get to these people. Help us to convince these people. But above all, help us to open the doors and get into these nations that are far, far away." (Spencer W. Kimball, Sydney Australia Area Conference, 28 February 1976).
Now I submit to you that the Lord does not deal in statistical impossibilities, and when he pleases upon any people the obligation of preaching the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people it is an assignment to be taken seriously and not something beyond possible reach. I have made the statement often that if every person in the Church did his job as a missionary as well as Wilford Woodruff once did, this would be accomplished now. (Richard L. Evans, Conference Report, April 1947, p. 96).
The missionaries of the Church have been sent out to warn the people and to gather out of the nations and out of our own land all who are willing to repent and receive the gospel. They are also commanded to warn others that they might escape the calamities and the judgments which are bound to continue if people will not receive the gospel.
When we see evil lurking, when we see dangers confronting the people, and especially the Latter-day Saints, it is our duty to raise the warning voice, and not only in behalf of the Latter-day Saints, but to warn all people, for our mission is one that is world-wide, and we should warn all men and give them the opportunity of repentance, of serving the Lord and keeping his commandments if they will. If they will not, yet we have saved our souls. We are clear from the blood of this generation. That is our duty. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954-56, 1:309-310).
This work is vital. It is vital! If we don't do it, we could just fade out and be eliminated from this old world, if we get too careless. We had better be doing what the Lord said when He went on the mountain, and said, "Go ye into all the world." He said, "GO! GO! GO! into all the world." And that means China, and India, and Japan, and Korea--"Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." (Spencer W. Kimball, Fair Oaks, California Dedication Address, 9 October 1983).
I am inclined to think that notwithstanding the gains we see in the work of the Lord, notwithstanding the reformation we see in the lives of many people, often we are prone to emphasize the problems and disregard the progress.
I am optimistic concerning the work of the Lord. I cannot believe that God has established His work in the earth to have it fail. I cannot believe that it is getting weaker. I know that it is getting stronger. I realize, of course, that we are beset in the world with many tragic problems. I am a newspaper reader, and I have seen a good deal of this earth. I have been in areas where war rages and hate smolders in the hearts of people. I have seen the appalling poverty that hovers over many lands. I have seen the oppression of those in bondage and the brutality of their overlords. I have watched with alarm the crumbling morals of our society.
And yet I am optimistic. I have a simple and solemn faith that right will triumph and that truth will prevail. I am not so naive as to believe there will not be setbacks, but I believe that “truth crushed to earth will rise again. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘Be Not Afraid, Only Believe’,” Ensign, [February 1996]: 2).
Upon us, as elders of this Church, has been laid the obligation to go into all the world and preach the gospel unto every creature. We have received a wonderful gift, but with that gift comes a great responsibility. We have been blessed of the Lord with a knowledge beyond our fellows, and with that knowledge comes the requirement that we divide it with his children wherever they may be. (George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1922, p. 53).
It is true that not every man is a natural missionary, and there are those who shrink from the responsibility of raising their voices in proclamation of the gospel, and yet this is an obligation that we owe to this fallen world. The elders in the very beginning had been commanded to serve the Lord with all their "heart, might, mind and strength," for the field is white and ready for the harvest. A penalty was to be inflicted upon those who failed and they were not to stand blameless at the last day. The preaching of the gospel was to be a means to them by which they were not to perish, but bring salvation to their souls. There are many who have been sent forth who have had a fear of man, yet the Lord has promised to support them in their labors if they will trust in him. (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols., Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1953, 1:220-221).
Fear is a hindrance to missionary work. Why should we fear any person in the world when we have such a great thing to give them? But it has been fear that has prevented missionaries from doing their best in the field, and you felt this when you first went out. . . . Fear is engendered by the adversary, and when we once cast aside fear and find what our potential is, that means there’s just no limitation. (Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, ed. Clyde J. Williams, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997, p. 254).
Proclaiming the gospel is not an activity in which we periodically and temporarily engage. And our labors as missionaries certainly are not confined to the short period of time devoted to full-time missionary service in our youth or in our mature years. Rather, the obligation to proclaim the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is inherent in the oath and covenant of the priesthood into which we enter. Missionary work essentially is a priesthood responsibility, and all of us who hold the priesthood are the Lord's authorized servants on the earth and are missionaries at all times and in all places—-and we always will be. Our very identity as holders of the priesthood and the seed of Abraham is in large measure defined by the responsibility to proclaim the gospel. (David A. Bednar, “Becoming a Missionary, Conference Report, October 2005).
As you have read those early accounts, have you pictured yourself there with Peter and John as they entered the temple gate on a certain day? Before them was "a certain man lame from his mother's womb...whom [others] laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered." He saw Peter and John and asked for alms, but Peter, "fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
"And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
"Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I unto thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
"And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength." (See Acts 3:1-7.)
"Such as I have." All of us need to ponder those words. Do we, too, have something we need to share? Yes! We have the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of peace, the gospel of joy. We have truths that can make any person better and more fulfilled, any marriage happier and sweeter, any home more heavenly. We have the priesthood power of God to bless our homes and lives and the lives of others. Yes, it is to ourselves, our homes, our quorums, our classes, our church assignments that we must carry more energetically those things that we have received. And it is to our nonmember neighbors and associates that we are now asked to also "give such as we
have." The Lord has commanded us to do so. We must lengthen our stride and must do it now. (Spencer W. Kimball, "Always a Convert Church," Ensign, [September 1975]: 3).
As members of the Lord's Church, we must take missionary work more seriously. The Lord's commission to "preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15) will never change in our dispensation. We have been greatly blessed with the material means, the technology, and an inspired message to bring the gospel to all men. More is expected of us than any previous generation. Where "much is given much is required." (D&C 82:3.)(Ezra Taft Benson, CR A'85, Ensign, 15 [May 1985]: 6).
You are surrounded by people. You pass them on the street, visit them in their homes, and travel among them. All of them are children of God, your brothers and sisters. God loves them just as he loves you. Many of these people are searching for purpose in life. They are concerned for their families. They need the sense of belonging that comes from the knowledge that they are children of God, members of His eternal family. They want to feel secure in a world of changing values. They want “peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (D&C 59:23), but they are kept from the truth because they know not where to find it” (D&C 123:12.) The gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith will bless their families, meet their spiritual needs, and help them fulfill their deepest desires. (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 1).
If there were no converts, the Church would shrivel and die on the vine. But perhaps the greatest reason for missionary work is to give the world its chance to hear and accept the gospel. The scriptures are replete with commands and promises and calls and rewards for teaching the gospel. I use the word "command" deliberately for it seems to be an insistent directive from which we, singly and collectively, cannot escape. (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
I ask you, what did He mean when the Lord took his Twelve Apostles to the top of the Mount of Olives and said: ‘...And ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth' (Acts 1:8). These were His last words on earth before He went to His heavenly home. What is the significance of the phrase 'uttermost most part of the earth'? He had already covered the area known to the apostles. Was it the people in Judea? Or those in Samaria? Or the few millions in the Near East? Where were the 'uttermost parts of the earth'? Did He mean the millions in what is now America? Did He include the hundreds of thousands or even millions, in Greece, Italy, around the Mediterranean, the inhabitants of central Europe? What did he mean? Or did He mean all the living people of all the world and those spirits assigned to this world to come in centuries ahead?
Have we underestimated his language or its meaning? How can we be satisfied with 100,000 converts out of nearly four billion people in the world who need the gospel? After His crucifixion the eleven apostles assembled on a mountain in Galilee and the Savior came to them and said: '...All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:' (He said 'all nations.') 'Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.' (Matthew 28:18-20). Again as Mark records the events after the resurrection, he...then commanded them, '...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.' (Mark 16:15). And this was just before the ascension. Do you think he meant Egypt and Palestine and Greece? Do you think he included the world of 33 AD or the world of 1970, 1980, 1990? What was included in his phrase 'all the world' and what did he mean by 'every creature'? And Luke records the event - '...That repentance and remission of sins should be preached...among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.' (Luke 24:47.) Again, his last command. Surely there is significance in these words! There was a universal need and there must be universal coverage... Remember also that Enoch the prophet, beheld the spirits that God had created. (See Moses 6:36). These prophets visualized the numerous spirits and all the creations. It seems to me that the Lord chose his words when he said 'every nation,' 'every land,' 'uttermost bounds of the earth,' 'every tongue,' 'every people,' 'every soul,' 'all the world,' 'many lands.' Surely there is a significance to these words! (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
Certainly his sheep were not limited to the thousands about him and with whom he rubbed shoulders each day. A universal family! A universal command! My brethren, I wonder if we are doing all we can. Are we complacent in our approach to teaching all the world? We have been proselyting now 144 years. Are we prepared to lengthen our stride? To enlarge our vision?...
Now, how can we do this? We see that there are these elements to be considered: the breaking down of resistance of the nations of the world to receive our missionaries; a greatly increased missionary force; a better trained missionary army; and better and additional methods and approaches. Now here we will consider each one in its turn. We need to enlarge our field of operation. We will need to make a full, prayerful study of the nations of the world which do not have the gospel at this time, and then bring into play our strongest and most able men to assist the Twelve to move out into the world and to open the doors of every nation as fast as it is ready (Spencer W. Kimball, "When the World Will be Converted," Ensign, [October 1974]: 4).
After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel. (Joseph Smith, Jr., History of the Church, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978, 2:478).
All of us who have received the holy priesthood bear the sacred obligation to bless the nations and families of the earth by proclaiming the gospel and inviting all to receive by proper authority the ordinances of salvation. Many of us have served as full-time missionaries, some of us presently are serving as full-time missionaries, and all of us now are serving and will continue to serve as lifelong missionaries. We are missionaries every day in our families, in our schools, in our places of employment, and in our communities. Regardless of our age, experience, or station in life, we are all missionaries. (David A. Bednar, “Becoming a Missionary,” Conference Report, October 2005).
Missionary work has its greatest effect as people make and keep the commitment to stay active in the Church all the days of their lives. It is not enough for people to simply come into the Church. They must come to stay. All of your teaching and invitations must be directed toward this end. In order to receive all the blessings that our Heavenly Father has in store for them, members must continue to live the gospel and be active in the Church.
Nephi taught: “And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; . . . ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ . . . and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2 Nephi 31:19-20).
Give your best efforts to help people qualify for “eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God” (D&C 14:7). (Preach my Gospel: A guide to missionary service. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2004, p. 221).
We have come to this earth upon a mission; . . . that we may have power to go forth and warn the nations of the earth. . . . As elders of Israel, very few of us fully comprehend our position, our calling, our relationship to God, our responsibility, our work the Lord requires at our hands. (The Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, sel. G. Homer Durham, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1946, p. 124).
All around the world, missionaries are responding to this testimony-driven joy in sharing the gospel. Many of them are entering the MTC with their own marked and well-studied copies of the missionary guide Preach My Gospel. I am pleased to report that with the use of Preach My Gospel, they are increasingly able to teach in their own words by the power of the Spirit and are better able to adjust their lessons to the needs of those whom they are teaching. As a result they are having meaningful impact on many lives.
But quite frankly, what they need now is more people to teach. Experience has shown that the best teaching situations develop when our members participate in the finding and teaching process. This is nothing new—you've heard it before. Some of you may even feel guilty that you are not giving much help to the missionaries. (M. Russell Ballard, “Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home,” Conference Report, April 2006).
From the beginning of this work, missionary service has been a four-step process:
1. Finding the investigator. 2. Teaching the investigator. 3. Baptizing the worthy convert. 4. Fellowshipping and strengthening the new member. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, [May 1999]: 104).
