With Lowliness of Heart, Meekness, and Humility

In the revelation commanding the Twelve to go and take the gospel to Europe, the Lord instructed them about how they should preach. He said, “Let the residue continue to preach from that hour, and if they will do this in all lowliness of heart, in meekness and humility, and long-suffering, I, the Lord, give unto them a promise that I will provide for their families; and an effectual door shall be opened for them, from henceforth.” Here the Lord emphasized that humility was key to their success as missionaries, giving them three terms—lowliness of heart, meekness, and humility—that all mean about the same thing. For them to have success in Great Britain where they would go, they needed to be humble. They showed this humility from the beginning by going back into hostile Missouri to fulfill this instruction in the same revelation: “Let them take leave of my saints in the city of Far West, on the twenty-sixth day of April next, on the building-spot of my house, saith the Lord” (Doctrine and Covenants 118:3,5). Brigham Young insisted that they obey this counsel even though their enemies had taken over Far West, and in the middle of the night they snuck back into the city so they could officially leave from the temple as commanded. This showed their dedication to doing whatever the Lord commanded instead of depending upon their own understanding. That mission of course turned out to be incredibly successful as thousands of converts in England joined the Church and ultimately came to Nauvoo. Surely that “effectual door” that was opened for them was in large part due to the humility with which they performed their missionary labors.

               Many other passages in the Doctrine and Covenants similarly associate the need for meekness and humility with performing missionary work. The Lord instructed the Saints, “And let your preaching be the warning voice, every man to his neighbor, in mildness and in meekness” (Doctrine and Covenants 38:41). In another revelation about missionary work, the Lord said, “But a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall declare whatsoever thing ye declare in my name, in solemnity of heart, in the spirit of meekness, in all things” (Doctrine and Covenants 100:7). Another section says something similar this way: “And again, verily I say unto you, those who desire in their hearts, in meekness, to warn sinners to repentance, let them be ordained unto this power” (Doctrine and Covenants 63:57). Martin Harris was told to “declare glad tidings” of the gospel but that he should “do it with all humility, trusting in [the Savior], reviling not against revilers” (Doctrine and Covenants 19:30). The Savior declared to Thomas B. Marsh, “And by thy word many high ones shall be brought low, and by thy word many low ones shall be exalted. Thy voice shall be a rebuke unto the transgressor; and at thy rebuke let the tongue of the slanderer cease its perverseness.” That sounds pretty dramatic, but it was not in pride that this was to be done for He followed up directly with this counsel: “Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers” (Doctrine and Covenants 112:9-10). All these passages highlight one of the fundamental requirements for preaching the gospel: humility. We focus sometimes on the need to be bold in declaring the truths of the gospel, which certainly is important, but it must be done in humility. For each of us today as we seek to share the gospel, perhaps we should worry more about showing true meekness than about speaking in a dramatic way or giving some powerful display of the gospel. What will resonate most with people will surely be our humble testimony of the Savior and His restored gospel. If we can bear witness of the gospel in meekness, surely the Lord’s promise to the Twelve is for us as well: an effectual door will be opened before us.