Humility and Love

I remember one time in the MTC as I went to the Provo Temple I felt the impression that what I needed most as I departed for the mission field was to have humility and love. Those of course are two of the virtues espoused in the list of missionary attributes given to Father Smith: “Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence” (Doctrine and Covenants 4:6). Charity and humility were even placed together, and they are essential for those who want to share the gospel. They are also essential Christlike attributes in general and there are several places in the scriptures that link these. One of those is in the address of King Benjamin to his people when he taught them how they could always rejoice. He said, “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.” In other words, he invited them to have real humility, the kind of humility that recognizes the supremacy of God and our nothingness compared to Him, the kind of humility that brings our own egos down to the dirt and calls on the name of the Lord instead of relying on mortal strength. With this level of humility, he promised, “And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God” (Mosiah 4:11-12). Pure humility before God will lead to love, and being filled with both humility and love we will always rejoice. That greatest kind of joy will only come, as Mormon taught in describing the love and humility that Ammon had, to “the truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness” (Alma 27:18).

             Two of our most powerful examples and teachings of humility and love in the scriptures come from Mormon and Moroni, despite the fact that they were surrounded by a people who were filled with pride and hatred. Mormon declared, “Teach parents that they must repent and be baptized, and humble themselves as their little children…. And I am filled with charity, which is everlasting love; wherefore, all children are alike unto me; wherefore, I love little children with a perfect love.” He had love and humility like little children and invited us to develop the same: “The remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer” (Moroni 8:10, 17, 26). He also taught how essential it is for the follower of Christ to develop humility: “Behold I say unto you that he cannot have faith and hope, save he shall be meek, and lowly of heart. If so, his faith and hope is vain, for none is acceptable before God, save the meek and lowly in heart.” With this humility we are naturally led to have love: “If a man be meek and lowly in heart, and confesses by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Christ, he must needs have charity; for if he have not charity he is nothing; wherefore he must needs have charity” (Moroni 7:43-44). We see this kind of humility and love in his son Moroni as well who said meekly, “Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing;… And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the awkwardness of our hands…. When we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.” He humbly recognized his weakness before the Lord, but he was also full of love for his brethren: “I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity…. I, Moroni, bid farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren whom I love” (Ether 12:23-25, 36, 38). He loved even those who were seeking his death, and because of his humility and purity he saw the Lord and talked with Him face to face. He left us this powerful invitation in the last chapter of the Book of Mormon to have both humility and love as we come unto the Savior: “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” (Moroni 10:32).