Latter-day Counsel:
Excerpts from Recent Addresses of President Gordon B. Hinckley

Knowledge of God

“We have a testimony of God, the Eternal Father, and the Lord, Jesus Christ, that does not come of philosophy, that does not come of the argument of divines through the ages, but that comes of a living experience, of a living young man who spoke to the living God and the living Christ, and he learned more of their nature in a very short time than all of the clerics and priests and what had been arrived at during centuries of discussion one with another on the nature of God. That is our great message” (meeting, Nairobi, Kenya, 17 Feb. 1998).

Be Good Neighbors

“He [the Lord] expects us to be good neighbors, Christians in every sense of the word, those who follow the Golden Rule—’whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them’ (Matt. 7:12; 3 Ne. 14:12). My brothers and sisters, we must be good neighbors. We must be a friendly people. We must recognize the good in all people. We don’t go about tearing down other churches. We preach and teach in a positive and affirmative way” (meeting, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 5 Aug. 1998).

Testimony

“An argument never won a convert. I’m convinced of that. It takes a humble testimony, when all is said and done, to win a convert to this Church” (dedication of Joseph Smith Sr. family log cabin near Palmyra, New York, 27 Mar. 1998).

Honesty

“I think the Lord expects of His people that they will be absolutely honest in all of their dealings. In all that they do, they will be honest with others and honest with themselves. ‘We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men’ (A of F 1:13)” (meeting, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 5 Aug. 1998).

The Power of the Priesthood

“You men who hold the priesthood of God, live up to that priesthood. You have something more precious than anything else on earth. It is the power, it is the opportunity, it is the authority to speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world, to hold office in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to administer to the sick, to lay your hands upon the heads of others and call down the blessings of heaven. You will not go to any school to learn how to do this, but you will be trained in the Church, and if you are faithful and true, God will bless you. He will magnify you. He will increase your powers. Live worthy of this great gift, my brethren. Be men of whom the Lord may be proud” (meeting, Torreón, Mexico, 11 Mar. 1998).

Clean Language

“I think the Lord expects that we will keep our language clean. You don’t need to swear. You don’t need to use filthy language. You don’t need to take the name of the Lord in vain. He has said, ‘Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord … in vain’ (Ex. 20:7), and has pronounced a penalty upon those who take His name in vain. You don’t need to do it. Don’t take the name of the Lord in vain. To do so simply says that you don’t have vocabulary enough to express yourself without taking the name of the Lord in vain. Avoid it. You don’t need to do that, not for one second” (meeting, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 5 Aug. 1998).

Word of Wisdom

“I believe the Lord expects us to live the Word of Wisdom. He gave it to us as a great law of health, not to put shackles on us but to bless our lives. What a marvelous and wonderful thing it is. Nobody needs alcohol. Nobody. You young people, don’t touch beer. You don’t need it. It won’t do you a bit of good. Not one bit of good. You don’t need tobacco. A marvelous thing has happened. The people of the world are finally awakening to a realization of the harmful results from indulging in tobacco. The Word of Wisdom was given in 1833, in which it is stated that ‘tobacco … is not good for man’ (D&C 89:8). What a marvelous thing it is” (meeting, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 5 Aug. 1998).