President McKay, my brethren and sisters, I sincerely hope that I may have the inspiration and guidance necessary to express to you one or two thoughts.

I have been thinking about the Israelites when they were in Egypt and were slaves, but through the guidance and direction of the Prophet Moses, it was possible for them to become free and leave Egypt and go to the Promised Land. The Lord gave them inspiration through Moses and guided them which built them up in the faith that God actually lived and that in the future his Son, Jesus Christ, would appear upon the earth. He gave them the Ten Commandments. I draw to your attention the fourth commandment. I shall only read part of it. The Lord said, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
"Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work:
"But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God"  Ex. 20:8-10

As the Israelites traveled along, they forgot the Ten Commandments. They gathered together their gold and built the golden calf which they worshiped in place of the Lord, and they forgot the Lord's day—the Sabbath day. They failed to meet together on the Sabbath day and thank the Lord for all of the blessings that he bestowed upon them, namely freedom and the right to hold the Promised Land.

This event with reference to keeping the Sabbath day holy by commandment from God took place 3,500 years ago. Two thousand years ago, the Christ taught the world to keep the Sabbath day holy, for he declared, "And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath"  Mark 2:27 Conditions in the world then as of today indicate that man is made for the Sabbath and not the Sabbath for man. Brethren and sisters, if people will give consideration of the Sabbath as a holy day and remember God who has given them life as their Father and Jesus Christ, his Son, as their older Brother, meeting together in priesthood meeting and Sacrament meeting with the attitude of prayer, they will be blessed, guided, and directed by divine inspiration whereby they can bear testimony that God actually lives and that Christ is his Son.

Again, it was necessary for the Lord to make it clear to the people that the Sabbath day is his day, a holy day, for on August 7, 1831, one hundred and twenty-seven years ago, an American Prophet, Joseph Smith, received a revelation from the Lord, "And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High"  D&C 59:9-10

We of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accept this marvelous revelation, and we accept and look upon the Sabbath day of the Lord as the most sacred day of the week. As a people, we have a great responsibility not only living the gospel but also in constantly keeping the Sabbath day of the Lord holy and sacred, thereby setting an example to the world as a whole.

The Sabbath day is indeed a day of rest and one wherein we express our appreciation to the Lord for the many blessings that we have and do receive.

As the Israelites worshiped the golden calf  Ex. 32:4 in many respects in various areas the golden calf is again being worshiped wherein nations and individuals are interested in the matter of recreation, the earning of money, farming, and different kinds of other businesses on the Sabbath day, all of which is contrary to the mind and will of him who gave us life, even our Father in heaven.

I am positively sure that after the organization of the Church on April 6, 1830, the membership kept the Sabbath day holy. Originally, they were in New York, Ohio, Missouri, and finally Illinois and were driven out of Nauvoo by their enemies. The Prophet had borne his testimony of the existence of God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, for he saw them and lost his life for bearing this testimony; but another new prophet was selected, even Brigham Young, who led the membership of the Church in making the long trip across the plains to the area of these mountains where the Church is now located and where we, its membership, have the privilege of dwelling. The pioneers on Sunday recognized the day of the Lord—the Sabbath. They thanked him for all the blessings that had been bestowed upon them. They partook of the Sacrament and received inspiration and divine guidance from their leadership which included the prophet and members of the twelve. The pioneers not only accepted the Sabbath day as the Holy Day of the Lord as they traveled over the plains, but also after arriving here and in various areas they saw to it that the Sabbath day was a holy day wherein they held Sacrament meeting and gave consideration to the Holy Priesthood which they held. They looked upon one another as brethren and sisters, sons and daughters of God, and Jesus Christ his Son, as their older Brother. The pioneers have set us a great example with reference to keeping the Sabbath day holy, and therein we have a great responsibility in so teaching the world the holiness of the Sabbath day by the kind of example we set. We have many opportunities not only for ourselves but for others; for example, the great Sunday School organization is available to teach the gospel as it has been revealed through Jesus Christ and the prophets from the days of the Prophet Joseph down to the present time. Brigham Young declared upon one occasion, "In some of our Wards and settlements the administering of the Sacrament has been introduced in the Sunday Schools. It is very pleasing and gratifying to the spirit that I possess, for the parents to see that their children attend Sunday school and receive the proper instruction with regard to their faith. After the Sunday school is over, let the parents take the pains to bring their children to meetings" (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 19, page 92). He recognized the most important meeting of the week—the Sacrament meeting on the day of the Lord, the day when they should come together and partake of the Sacrament and remember exactly what the Christ had done in dying for all men and making it possible for us to have the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation, our guidance and our direction. I pray the day will come that all of these men of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthood will attend Sunday morning priesthood meeting, Sunday School, and particularly the Sacrament meeting.

There comes to my mind the history of a wonderful man. I knew him at the age of twelve. His name was Jesse Knight. As a boy I lived with my family in Eureka, Utah, until I arrived at the age of fourteen, and during my boyhood days, I knew and came in contact with Jesse Knight. He opened up five of the great mines in the Eureka area and became a very wealthy man but with all of it, he was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He paid his tithing and made contributions to the Church, and particularly to Brigham Young University, but in spite of his wealth and greatness, he did not see the golden calf. He was one of those individuals who accepted the Sabbath day as the day of the Lord. On the Sabbath day, his mines were closed His miners had the opportunity of rest and of attending their various meetings. There was erected a mining camp which carried his name, Knightsville, wherein he immediately saw to it that a chapel was erected, a ward was organized, and at the head of this ward as bishop was John Roundy, the general superintendent of all of these mines. I knew him when I was a boy and up until the time he passed away some few years ago. But the thought is this, that to Jesse Knight the Sabbath day was a holy day not only for himself but also for all of those who were employed by him. Upon closing his mines on the Sabbath day there were other individuals who owned mines in the area who complained, indicating that closing the mines on Sunday would create difficulty for them, but, nevertheless, Brother Knight went ahead and closed his mines. In a short time, the owners of these other mines soon followed his example, and in this large mining camp for several years all miners had the privilege of attending their meetings and keeping the day of the Lord holy which unfortunately has since changed wherein the holy day of the Lord is forgotten in many such areas.

Once again, brethren and sisters, I bear testimony to you that if we will keep the Sabbath day holy, the Lord will bless us, guide us, inspire us, and direct us in solving our many problems. The Lord will never forget us if we do not forget him. The Apostle Paul said "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost"  Rom. 14:17 Do you suppose that we can enjoy righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost if we fail to keep the Sabbath day holy? With reference to the statement of the Apostle Paul, "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; . . ." he had in mind of keeping the Sabbath day unholy by participating in recreation and the opening of businesses on the Sabbath day, all of which is contrary to the mind and will of our Father in heaven.

How inspiring it is to thank the Lord in our homes, and not only in our homes, but to have the privilege of coming together on the Sabbath day in Sacrament meeting and expressing our gratitude and thanks for the many blessings that we have and do receive from day to day.

I again draw to your attention the statement of the Prophet Moses over 3,500 years ago when he said, "Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God"  Ex. 20:8-10

And the statement of the Christ 2,000 years ago wherein he declared, "And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
"Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath"  Mark 2:27-28

And the revelation to the Prophet Joseph, "And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High"  D&C 59:9-10

In conclusion, my brethren and sisters, I bear testimony to you if we will follow and live the words of the Prophet Moses, of Jesus Christ the Son of God and the Prophet Joseph Smith, a divine prophet, in keeping the Sabbath day holy, the Lord, in turn, will bless us guide us, direct us, and inspire us which I pray will be the blessing of all of us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.