Moroni's Message of Grace

When Moroni was struggling with his own weaknesses, the Savior said to him: “Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek.”  And in case the prophet missed the message, Christ then repeated the same thought about the sufficiency of His grace: “My grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”  Moroni, alone and overcome by his own limitations, clearly received that grace and strength of the Savior to allow him to successfully fulfill the mission he had.  He stayed faithful as the sole survivor of the Nephites and left the sacred record for us in our day after adding his witness and the story of the Jaredites.  We know that indeed the Lord did give grace to Moroni such that his words, which the prophet felt were weak and awkward, became a powerful testimony that have helped millions to come to know that the Book of Mormon is true.  For me personally, his testimony in Ether 12 has been a great strength over and over again in my life as I have sought the Lord’s help in my own challenges.  Truly, the Savior’s grace was given to Moroni so that his written words indeed became “mighty even as [Christ is]” (Ether 12:24-27).                

               After this experience, Moroni focused on helping each of us to receive that grace of the Savior.  He recorded, “I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity.”  He prayed that we might have grace to help us become like the Savior, and he also invited us directly to receive the grace of God in our lives: “And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever” (Ether 12:36, 41).  He also ended the Book of Mormon with another invitation for us to come unto Christ and receive His grace.  In the final three verses of the last chapter he mentioned grace five times: “Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot” (Moroni 10:32-33).  The capstone message of the Book of Mormon is to come unto Christ with all our strength so that we can receive the strength and grace of the Savior in our lives to ultimately become perfect and holy.  Yes, we are required us to come unto Him and to love God with all our hearts, but in the end it is His grace that enables and purifies and perfects us.  That is Moroni’s message to us and the closing testimony of the Book of Mormon.  If we will take our weaknesses in humility to the Savior, seeking to love and serve Him with all our strength, He will through His “infinite goodness and grace” help us triumph over all our mortal obstacles (Moroni 8:3).