Discipleship

President David O. McKay

Preach the Word

“Today civilized nations are sitting on a mountain of explosives, accumulated in defiance of Christ’s teachings. Let the heat of hatred, suspicion, and greed become a little more intense, and there will be such an international explosion as will greatly retard, if not forcibly drive from the midst of mankind, the hoped-for peace heralded by the heavenly hosts when Christ as a babe was born in Bethlehem.”


Stephen L. Richards

Keep the Commandments

“I cannot see how the rank and file of the people who are classed as atheistic communists could accept the godless totalitarianism of Marx and Lenin if they really had a comprehension and knowledge of the Fatherhood of God, the brotherhood of man, and the eternal plans of the Father for the well-being and exaltation of his children.”


President Spencer W. Kimball

Build or Destroy

“There are those today who seem to take pride in disagreeing with the orthodox teachings of the Church and who present their own opinions which are at variance with the revealed truth. Some may be partially innocent in the matter; others are feeding their own egotism; and some seem to be deliberate. Men may think as they please, but they have no right to impose upon others their unorthodox views. Such persons should realize that their own souls are in jeopardy.”



President David O. McKay

“What About Jesus Christ”

“‘…we are a body who aid one another in the productive life; we waste none of our substance in vice, luxury, or ostentation; we do not dissipate our energy in brawling, gambling, or unwholesome habits; we conserve our resources of body and mind and devote them to the upbuilding of the Kingdom of God, which is not a mystical, but a real kingdom; it is a body of people dominated by ideas of productivity, which is mutual service.'”





Ezra Taft Benson of the Council of the Twelve

Jesus Christ—Gifts and Expectations

‘Sometimes [God] temporarily grants to men their unwise requests in order that they might learn from their own sad experiences. Some refer to this as the “Samuel principle.” The children of Israel wanted a king, like all the nations… The Lord responded by saying to Samuel, “They have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.” The Lord told Samuel to warn the people of the consequences… Samuel gave them the warning, but they still insisted on their king. So God gave them a king and let them suffer… Sometimes in our attempts to mimic the world, contrary to the prophet’s counsel, we run after the world’s false educational, political, musical, and dress ideas. New worldly standards take over, a gradual breakdown occurs, and finally, after much suffering, a humble people are ready to be taught once again a higher law.’


Marion G. Romney

“In Mine Own Way”

“We cannot afford to become wards of the government, even though we have a legal right to do so. It requires too great a sacrifice in self-respect and in political, temporal, and spiritual independence. Let us work for what we need. Let us be self-reliant and independent. Salvation can be obtained on no other principle. Salvation is an individual matter, and we must work out our own salvation, in temporal as well as in spiritual things.”