4:2-3, 5
Why is humility so essential? If the name of the game is progression, the foundational skill in that progress is humility. Without humility, there isn’t a desire to progress. If I think I’m plenty righteous, why would I strive to be more righteous! If we can see ourselves as perpetual works in progress, our progress is certain.
After King Benjamin speaks to his people, they see themselves clearly. “And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth.” Knowing about the goodness of God had awakened them to “a sense of your nothingness, and your worthless and fallen state.” Again, this humility is essential to progress.
If we see ourselves, and our efforts, as lower than the dust, it helps us understand our reliance on Jesus Christ. There is no wonder the people “all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men.” Jesus Christ has saved us from death and hell. The atonement of Jesus Christ allows us to be forgiven. Even more, the atonement of Jesus Christ allows our hearts to be purified. It is only through Jesus Christ and the Spirit that we can “put off the natural man.” Without Jesus Christ and the power from the Holy Ghost, all of us - sooner or later - would succumb to the weakness of the natural man.
If we can fully embrace this principle, we can feel joy and peace - not only at some future point but RIGHT NOW! “And it came to pass that after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience, because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who should come, according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto them.” All of us should want this “peace of conscience.” As a reminder, that peace does not come from self mastery. This pure joy and peace only comes through our faith in Jesus Christ.
4:6
Why do we love God? Why do we want to be like him? Why do we follow him? Think about the reasons that you love and admire and follow anyone. For someone to be “followable,” he or she must be special in some way. What adds power to our following is if we have a sincere relationship with that person. It’s one thing to “follow” someone who we respect on social media, it’s another to follow someone who we also consider a friend. When we know the person we’re following, our following becomes more sincere. It’s personal.
It is the same way with our relationship with God. “I say unto you, if ye have come to a KNOWLEDGE of the goodness of God, and his matchless power, and his wisdom, and his patience, and his long-suffering towards the children of men.” When we know God instead of simply knowing OF him, a relationship is formed. If we know and experience his goodness, and power, and wisdom, and patience, and long-suffering, we love, respect and feel committed to him.
The greatest example of God’s love for us is that he allowed his only begotten son to be sacrificed for us. “…and, also, the atonement which has been prepared from the foundation of the world…” There is no question that God loves us dearly.
The question is how we react to God’s greatness. “…that thereby salvation might come to him that should put his trust in the Lord, and should be diligent in keeping his commandments, and continue in the faith even unto the end of his life, I mean the life of the mortal body.” If we know God, we:
Trust him. We trust we will inherit eternal reward. We trust that he will do all that he’s covenanted to do.
Are diligent in keeping his commandments. We are not perfectly obedient but are diligent in being obedient. We are continually leaning into our obedience. Of course, the two greatest commandments are to love God and our fellow man.
Continue in the faith even unto the end of his life. Faith continually leads us to the next level of our righteousness. We want to progress because we have faith that we can. To follow Jesus Christ is to exercise faith. For how long are we expected to exercise our faith, until the end of our mortality…and beyond.
Faith is connected to trust. Trust and faith naturally leads to diligence in obedience. Faith without works is dead faith.
4:10
“And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them.” There are three keys in this verse:
Repent of your sins and forsake them.
Humble yourself.
Ask that he would forgive you.
Progression is about being increasingly more righteous. Progression is about humbly believing that we can progress. Progression is about relying on God to forgive and strengthen us. This life is about progression!
If we believe in something, we should do it. Sometimes, there is a gap between believing and doing. Much of our discipleship is bridging that gap.
4:11
“And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel.” King Benjamin is very concerned that his people may not continue in humility. He reminds them repeatedly that they are nothing in relation to God. He wants them to see themselves as unworthy and consider their “nothingness.” King Benjamin, rightly so, is worried that they will begin to be prideful and that pride will lead to their downfall.
A constant, effective method for maintaining our humility is to “call on the name of the Lord daily.” Prayer is speaking to a superior being and asking for help and thanking God for the blessings we enjoy. It is very hard to begin to develop pride when you are DAILY speaking with a perfect being.
King Benjamin speaks about being diligent and steadfast. Progression isn’t about greatness. It’s about consistency with the basic actions of prayer, scripture study, fasting, church and temple attendance. If someone is being steadfast in these basic things, they will be firmly planted on the covenant path to becoming like Jesus Christ.
Finally, what does it mean to “taste of his love?” Tasting something is a very personal action. How something tastes is unique to me. It’s something that is very hard to describe. Attempt to explain how chocolate “tastes.” It’s almost impossible. You just have to experience it. I think God’s love is similar. It’s very hard to express it in words. It’s something that we just know and it’s as personal as it gets.
4:12
“And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.” Being humble and steadfast in our faith will allow us to:
“Be filled with the love of God.“ We will feel God’s loves for us and express that same love to our fellow man.
“Retain a remission of your sins.” Those sins that we have repented for and forsaken will continue to be in our past. Those sins will die to us.
“Grow in the knowledge and glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.” As we remain humble/teachable/diligent, we will continue to learn more about God and his gospel. The plan of salvation will continue to be unfolded to our minds.
Our perspective will be such that we will truly love each other and fellow sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. “And ye will not have a mind to injure one another, but to live peaceably.”
4:15
Teaching our children the gospel is the biggest responsibility any of us can have. “But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another.” The plan of salvation must be known and taken seriously. Our children cannot believe that this world is a meaningless exercise without much meaning. They must understand the plan of salvation and their role and potential. They must understand that what they choose to think about and do has consequences for their mortal and immortal lives.
Children are inherently selfish and parents must actively help them to see how they should love and serve each other. Parents cannot allow children to grow up and be perpetually selfish - which is certainly a big part of our natural tendency as mortals.
4:17-20
This is a challenge for me. I feel that this verse is written specifically for me. “Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just— “ I have said this many times when I see a beggar. If I see someone who is asking for money who is clearly stoned, I often think about how he’s experiencing the consequences of his poor choices. I don’t offer help because I judge that my help will be used for nefarious purposes. I really need to repent and repeat these words over and over as I come across those who are begging me for help.
“But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God.” Which is worse:
Be homeless because of bad financial decisions.
Be heartless because you don’t care about other people that much.
Which has more eternal consequences? Which shapes moral character more? Which is more cancerous to becoming Christlike? To not care about our fellow man is a serious sin that will prevent us from becoming like God. To judge and insist on justice rather than mercy is very un-godlike. The kingdom of God is about selflessness. If we are not selfless, we truly won’t be interested in the kingdom of God.
Everyone of us is relying on God for everything that we have. “For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?” Every possession I have, even my life, could be taken away in a minute.
Every day I am on my knees asking God to bless me with things that I don’t deserve. “And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy.” I’m so grateful he doesn’t look at me and think, “his punishments are just.” All of us want God to be a God of mercy rather than justice … in our case at least. We can gain much godly practice in this life if we will demonstrate mercy at every opportunity.
4:22-23
There are always natural consequences for our withholding help from those who ask for it. “And if ye judge the man who putteth up his petition to you for your substance that he perish not, and condemn him, how much more just will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God, to whom also your life belongeth; and yet ye put up no petition, nor repent of the thing which thou hast done.” This verse also underscores the point that, withholding mercy will do more damage to our eternal progression than other, lesser sins. Being selfish retards our spiritual growth more than most weaknesses. Selfishness is another flavor for pride.
Also, the wealth that we may be holding onto is essentially worthless in the eternities. “I say unto you, wo be unto that man, for his substance shall perish with him; and now, I say these things unto those who are rich as pertaining to the things of this world.” Wealth is a very temporary blessing. We cannot take one dime into the next life.
4:26-27
What would the world be like if all of us were eagerly helping those who need it? “And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you—that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God—I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their WANTS.” To not help others is a sin of omission. It is not one of the Ten Commandments to serve each other. Often, sins of omission are overlooked in our daily repentance. King Benjamin explains that, for us to retain a remission of our sins, we must serve. I think it’s about becoming a selfless being. If we attempt to be a righteous person while remaining selfish, our plan will not work long term. The likelihood of our previous sins returning are much greater when we are focused on ourselves.
It’s interesting that King Benjamin uses the word “wants” rather than “needs.” By doing so, he eliminates an excuse for us. Many of us may excuse ourselves from helping if we judge that the person doesn’t “need” our help. We may consider what they are asking for unnecessary. Therefore, saying that we should help people with what they want is a good way of killing that excuse.
However, we shouldn’t sacrifice our own well-being to be constantly serving. “And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.” We cannot be completely selfless beings in this life and survive. We must take care of our own needs. However, we should “be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize.” The prize is eternal life.
4:30
“But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not.” Remember, I don’t think that there is a video playing of all of our bad thoughts and words and deeds that we will have to answer for. I do think that every single decisions has some effect on shaping our character. Our decisions are cumulative. I am a current product of every decision I’ve ever made.
Certainly, there is a progressiveness to our bad decisions. Our thoughts become words which become deeds. I can say that our deeds do more to shape our character than anything but every bad deed starts with a thought. Alternatively, every good deed also starts with a thought. So, every thought matters. What we think about is ultimately what we do. So, there are no meaningless thoughts. I think that is why King Benjamin wants us to be sobers minded about our daily lives. If we will remember our life’s purpose, we will “perish not.”
5:2
If our hearts change, it is a gift from God. “And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.” No truly Christlike person has patted themselves on the back about how selfless they are. A Christlike disciple understands that it is the Spirit that has “wrought a mighty change in us.” Our disposition to do good, or evil, is a product of the “Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent.”
Again, the point is to be proactively doing good. It is not enough to simply not do evil things - we must do good things. How often? Is it once a day? Once a week? King Benjamin says that it should be “continually.” At every opportunity, we should look for opportunities to do good.
5:5, 7-8
The people were willing to “enter into a covenant with our God to do his will…” Why are covenants so important? I’ve written before about how a covenant affects human behavior much more than a simple agreement or commitment. A covenant people are more likely to stick to their covenants. Our desire to remain true to covenants is part of the force that moves us forward in faith. Those who avoid covenants and simply strive to be a good person are less likely to stay on the path. It’s just human nature.
Covenants also connect. They are a two-way agreement being two people. They are tied together. A covenant can be just like a family bond. “And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you.”
A child has faith in his father. This is part of why that child follows him. “…for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.” This is being born again. This is being born of the Spirit. We become new creatures.
When our hearts are truly changed by being born again, we are no longer bound by sin. “And under this head ye are made free, and there is no other head whereby ye can be made free.”
5:13
Christ’s entire existence is about serving us. To understand this to any degree requires us to attempt to serve like he serves. As we do, we gain insight into how he is. You could say that we get to know him by serving him. “For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?” If God is out of sight and out of mind, we are not building a relationship with him. But, if he is continually in our thoughts, we naturally grow closer to him.
5:15
It is important that we are obedient to the commandments. That is the foundation for our spiritual growth. But, becoming like Christ is more than that. It requires that we are “abounding in good works.” Yes, we should be steadfast and immovable when it comes to our obedience - but becoming Christlike is not all about obedience. Christ did do the will of his father, but that meant teaching, healing, serving, giving and sacrificing.
6:3
King Benjamin knew that one speech wouldn’t have a permanent effect. “And again, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had made an end of all these things, and had consecrated his son Mosiah to be a ruler and a king over his people, and had given him all the charges concerning the kingdom, and also had appointed priests to teach the people, that thereby they might hear and know the commandments of God, and to stir them up in remembrance of the oath which they had made, he dismissed the multitude, and they returned, every one, according to their families, to their own houses.” We humans have short memories. We can easily forget what isn’t in front of us. This is why we have General Conference twice a year. This is why we don’t just go through the temple once. This is definitely why we partake of the sacrament almost every single week. We must be stirred up to remembrance.
The repetitive, little things that we do are what help us live up to the eternally significant covenants that we have made.
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