The following is a transcript of President Hinckley's address delivered at the Tabernacle on Temple Square, Sunday, Dec. 6, 1998.

 By President Gordon B. Hinckley

       It is wonderful to look into the eyes of all those seated in the Tabernacle in this Christmas Devotional — fathers and mothers and children. We are grateful that you are here, that we are all members of one great family who love the Lord and seek to do His will. Beyond the Tabernacle are hundreds of thousands of others gathered in halls from sea to shining sea as we sing and pray and speak of the Christ Child who was born so long ago in Bethlehem of Judea.
      The Prophet Isaiah had told of His coming centuries before: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6).
      We honor the Beloved Son of our Eternal Father. It was Jesus, His Firstborn, who left the glory of His Father's presence and condescended to come to earth as the promised Messiah.
      It is proper that we gather together to remember Him in reverence and with love. He has done for us what we could not do for ourselves. He has brought meaning to our mortal existence. He has given us the gift of eternal life. He was and is the Son of God, who was "made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:1).
      All of this we know because of the words of ancient prophets and the writings of those who walked with Him in Palestine and in the land Bountiful. Our faith in Him is quickened and it becomes certain knowledge because of him who was His great testator, the Prophet Joseph whose birth we also honor during this month of December.
      I was at the Prophet Joseph's birthplace not long ago. It was a beautiful autumn day, with the sunlight filtering through white clouds. The leaves had been touched by the frost, and while still holding to the trees they created a scene of matchless beauty. This is a wonderful place to see and be on a quiet autumn day, to sit and reflect on matters of the past. Here in these stark woods, on the wintry day of December 23, 1805, was born a child who eventually was to cast a long shadow across the world in witness and testimony of the Redeemer of mankind. His family left that part of New England and moved to western New York. Here again I recently stood in the grove made sacred by his incomparable vision of God the Eternal Father and the risen Lord Jesus Christ.
      As a 14-year-old boy he knelt among the trees and offered prayer, seeking for the wisdom which he did not have. A light rested upon him and he saw "two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above [him] in the air. One of them spake unto [him], calling [him] by name and said, pointing to the other — This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" (Joseph Smith History 1:17). In that glorious manifestation he learned, as men had not learned in 18 centuries of time, of the personality, the form and substance, the beauty and luster of the Eternal Father and the risen Lord. From that day forth he stood as a bold and forthright witness of the Father and the Son.
      That early vision was fortified in later years when he testified that while engaged "in solemn and silent prayer the veil was taken from" his mind and that of his companion, "and the eyes of [their] understanding were opened.
      "We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber.
      "His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:
      "I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father" (D&C 110:1-4).
      He declared without equivocation: "And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all which we give of him: That he lives!
      "For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father — 
      "That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God" (D&C 76:22-24).
      No one has borne more certain knowledge of the Son of God, the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ, than has this great prophet of this the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times. Praise to his name. Honor to his memory. Reverence to him as an instrument in the hands of the Almighty in bringing to pass the restoration of His work in our time.
      This world which gropes for the light of faith in the darkness of doubt needs the testimony of the Prophet Joseph. For us, who share that testimony, there can never be any doubt concerning the place of our Redeemer in the great and majestic plan which God our Eternal Father has for His sons and daughters of all generations. Jesus grew up in the household of Joseph, the carpenter of Nazareth. His mother Mary, the most beautiful of all virgins according to Nephi's testimony, carried in her heart the sure and certain knowledge of His true Fatherhood. An angel had told her of this, and I am satisfied she never doubted it.
      He spurned the temptations of Satan, and in so doing set an example for each of us to stand tall and be strong in the face of the evil that is all about us.
      He walked the dusty roads of Palestine and sailed the gleaming waters of the sea of Galilee, teaching the people, ministering unto them, and healing them of their afflictions. He was loved by a few and hated by many. He was the only perfect man ever to walk the earth. He brought solace and reassurance to broken hearts. With simple parables He taught in such a way that His hearers could understand, and yet when He spoke of himself and the mission which He must perform, those closest to Him could not understand Him.
      He was taken by His enemies, crowned with a crown of platted thorns, dressed in a mocking robe of royal purple, and condemned to die as the people cried out for His innocent blood. He was nailed to a cross of wood in the most cruel and painful way to die. He hung on the cross in terrible agony looking down on those below Him.
      I think His great final words of forgiveness encompass not only those who looked upon Him, but all of mankind. Well might we say: "Father, forgive [us], for [we] know not what [we] do." Or, in yet deeper soul searching, pray "Father, forgive us for we do not what we know."
      On the third day He rose triumphant, "the first fruits of them that slept." Here was something that only a God could do. He broke the shackles of death. He took away death's victory and its bitter sting.
      No event of human history carries a more compelling witness than does the reality of the resurrection. His followers on two continents testified of it. Uncounted millions of men and women through the ages have suffered, even unto death, for the witness in their hearts that He lives, the Savior and the Redeemer of mankind whose Atonement came as an act of grace for the entire world. How long is the concourse of brave and humble people who have kept alive the name of Jesus and a testimony of His redemption.
      Now He has come again to bless us and warm our hearts, to quicken our faith and bring us sure and certain knowledge of His living reality. We, of all people, can sing:

       Joy to the world, the Lord is come; 
      Let earth receive her King!
      Let every heart prepare him room,
      And Saints and angels sing (Hymns #201).

       We honor Him, we worship Him, we love Him as our Redeemer, the great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New Testament. The entire thrust of the testimony of the Book of Mormon declares our living Lord before Whom we kneel in humility and faith.
      And so at this Christmas season, we gather together to sing His praises, and speak our words of faith and gratitude and love. It is His influence in our lives that stirs within us a little more of kindness, a little more of respect, a little more of love, a little more of concern. It is because of Him, and His teachings, that we reach out to those in trouble, distress, and need wherever they may be.
      As we sit together tonight I think of a little girl in Honduras whom we visited the other day. She is two years of age. She could not understand what we said nor could we understand what she said. She speaks a language largely foreign to us. She lost her mother in death some few months ago. Her father rather awkwardly tried to do his best for her. When the great hurricane came, with terrifying winds and rains that continued without ceasing for six days and six nights, in his desire to save her he piled very high the furniture in their house where the waters were rising. He took a little mattress and placed it at the top and laid her on it. In his frantic and desperate efforts he suffered a stroke and died. No one knew anything of her, until a young man, two days later, happened to look up in that abandoned house and saw her still alive. He tenderly brought her down and delivered her to the bishop and the bishop's wife. It was there that we saw her and the young man who had rescued her.
      The house where she was found and those of many others were flooded, the bedding destroyed and much of the clothing, the food spoiled. Through the blessings of the welfare program, which seeks to serve in the Lord's way, those in need have received new bedding and ample clothing. They now have beans and rice, powdered milk and cooking oil. That will sustain life but it is not very tasty.
      I would hope that at this Christmas season, when there will be no gift-giving among these devastated people, this small orphan girl might receive perhaps a little taste of candy, something sweet and delicious. I must and will see that that happens. Perhaps just a little will be present enough for that tiny child down in La Lima, Honduras.
      God bless you, my brothers and sisters. God bless the people everywhere, that the overpowering spirit of Christmas may come into the lives of men and women and children throughout the world that their hearts may be opened and their hands extended to help the needy. This is my humble prayer as I add my testimony of the living reality of the Father's Son, He who gave His life for our sins to save us and bless us, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.