Robert E. Wells

First Quorum of the Seventy (October 1, 1976 – October 4, 1997)

General Conference Addresses

• October 1995 General Conference
  • Our Message to the World
    • “The “divine Sonship” also refers to the designation “Only Begotten Son in the flesh.” Ancient and modern scriptures use the title “Only Begotten Son” to emphasize the divine nature of Jesus Christ. This title signifies that Jesus’ physical body was the offspring of a mortal mother and of an immortal Eternal Father, which verity is crucial to the Atonement, a supreme act that could not have been accomplished by an ordinary man. Christ had power to lay down His life and power to take it again because He had inherited immortality from His Heavenly Father. From Mary, His mother, Christ inherited mortality, or the power to die.”
    • “One of the hallmarks of the calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith was his divine education in the writings and prophecies of the ancient apostles and prophets.”
    • “The eternal truths he taught answered a brood of questions that had been in the minds of philosophers for centuries.”
    • “Those ancient American prophets wrote the Book of Mormon for our day. It has withstood every conceivable test by both skeptical and sincere minds. It is not on trial. We are the ones on trial, being tested by our acceptance or rejection of its truths, teachings, commandments, and declarations.”
    • “We have, in original form, everything that has ever been brought to earth that is part of the great Plan of Salvation—nothing altered, nothing modified. We believe in the same priesthood authority held by the ancients; the same organization as the primitive Church, headed by Apostles and prophets; the same spiritual gifts; the same ancient scriptures as well as new latter-day scriptures—the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl of Great Price.”
• April 1991 General Conference
  • Peace
    • “Today I’d like to speak about this spiritual peace offered by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount, when he gave us the beautiful beatitude about peace and peacemakers. The entire sermon is a blueprint for us to use in our personal path towards perfection, as well as a pattern of the many attributes and qualities we must develop in our eternal quest to approach the perfection and peace Jesus personifies.”
    • “Personal peace and our level of spirituality will increase as we focus on studying and thinking about Christ every day; by loving and thanking Christ more each day for his atoning sacrifice; by daily striving to serve Christ better through becoming more involved in missionary service; by making a greater effort to find his lost sheep, his lost coins, his lost prodigals, and helping them to return to the fold; by making a more concerted effort to be in the temple more frequently; and by researching more diligently our family’s history.”
• October 1985 General Conference
  • Adventures of the Spirit
    • “Of the many adventures I have enjoyed in my life, the greatest have been the soul-stirring missionary adventures.”
    • “In twenty-four months you will have twenty-four years’ worth of spiritual adventures. You will see people change; soften; become more humble, more obedient; have their prayers answered; and come to a knowledge that our message is true.”
• October 1982 General Conference
  • Be a Friend, a Servant, a Son of the Savior
    • “This is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are Christians. We know additional details about the Savior’s role in the premortal existence before we came here: we have new information about His part in the creation of the world under the direction of our Father; we can identify Him as Jehovah of the Old Testament, communicating with the prophets of Israel. We have the Book of Mormon, which is another testament of Jesus Christ, which has great illuminating doctrines and information about the Savior. Our modern prophets have given revealed explanations, doctrines, light, and knowledge on the Christ as the Redeemer to whom we look for the remission of our sins. We have a wealth of information of tremendous value to all Christian churches. We do not diminish or tear down the faith others have in Christ, but seek only to share with them our additional knowledge of the Lamb, the Shepherd, the Holy One of Israel (see Ps. 71:22)—for their benefit and salvation.”
    • “This explanation of my not knowing where Joseph Smith is buried seemed to be the most dramatic kind of clarification my friend could have received. He was thoroughly astonished, but he could easily see that his understanding of our Church had been completely wrong. This turnabout then led to a conversation in which truths regarding how we do worship the Savior could be discussed easily and openly. The positive fact that we are practicing Christians was established.”
    • “I believe it to be the responsibility of every member of the Church to so live and teach and preach that there will never be any doubt on the part of our friends, associates, and casual acquaintances as to our being Christians, having the desire to receive redemption through Him; to be the kind of person that is a friend of the Savior, a servant of the Savior, and a son or a daughter of the Savior.”
• October 1980 General Conference
  • Know the Shepherd
    • “The Prophet Joseph Smith met a martyr’s death. He died for his testimony, sealing his witness with his blood. We pay tribute to him as the first prophet of this dispensation and the most important prophet of all dispensations of time. He “has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived.” We honor Joseph Smith this 150th anniversary year of the founding of the Church as a prophet who knew the Shepherd intimately.”
• October 1978 General Conference
  • The Cs of Spirituality
    • “One of the principal purposes of this life is to find out if the Lord can trust us.”
    • “We are destined to be tried, tested, and proven during our sojourn on earth to see if we are trustworthy.”
    • “The Lord loves all of his children, but he can trust some more than others. It is far better when he can both love and trust each one of us.”
    • “The capacity the Lord looks for in us is that ability to perform to the degree that we become profitable servants unto him. The Lord has given us talents, gifts, and blessings. He expects us to magnify them and to use them in the service of others if he is to trust us.”
    • “Spiritual capital in a sense is an investment each has made in righteous living. It is an asset—in reserve—upon which we may draw in time of need. How do we develop spiritual capital and reserves? We need to make an investment in time studying the scriptures and the words of our living prophets; an investment in more meaningful communication with our Father in Heaven; an investment in service to others; an investment in unconditional, unselfish love of others; an investment in missionary labor, which lays up in store blessings and forgiveness of our sins; an investment in being wiser parents and more obedient children; an investment in doubling our performance in every calling. These investments will provide such spiritual capital and reserves that the Lord can truly trust us to overcome the temptations and frustrations of the world.”
• October 1976 General Conference
  • The Greatest Thing in My Life
    • “The greatest thing of my life has been missionary work—proselyting—and I am tremendously honored to be included in this historic missionary Quorum of Seventies.”
    • “And at this time-hallowed pulpit of the prophets I wish to bear my testimony that our Father in heaven lives and loves us and answers our prayers; that Jesus is the Christ, the Creator of this world—the Creator of worlds without number—who suffered, died for our sins, and was resurrected on that third day, and who stands at the head of this Church which bears his name.”

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