Confidence in the Presence of God

Yesterday in general conference President Nelson based his remarks on these words of revelation from Joseph Smith's experience in Liberty Jail: "Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven" (Doctrine and Covenants 121:45). He encouraged us to seek to increase our confidence in the presence of God and suggested that this is counsel for now and not just at the judgment day when we will physically be in the presence of God. One of the most important times that we need confidence is as we approach our Father in Heaven in prayer. Having confidence means that we trust that "Heavenly Father hears us,” that “He understands our needs better than we do,” and that “He loves us more than we can comprehend.” If we truly believe that, then we will come with confidence to Him each day seeking for guidance, help, and strength. This reminds me of the powerful words of Paul to the Hebrews: “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16). We should seek to come boldly to the throne of grace in prayer, knowing that He is touched by the feeling of our infirmities and desires to bless us in the best possible way.

               The verse that President Nelson quoted gives two attributes that we should seek in order to develop more confidence in the presence of God: charity and virtue. This is the case perhaps because those are two characteristics that are foundational to the character of the Lord. Charity, which is love, was used by John as the very essence of God: “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love…. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:8, 16). As we develop the gift of love we come to understand better who He is, becoming like Him. This is what Mormon taught as he encouraged us to seek out the gift of charity: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure” (Moroni 7:48). As we develop charity, which is a gift from Him, we shall become more like Him. That, in turn, will surely give us confidence to be in His presence. John also wrote, “And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming” (1 John 2:28). John also recorded these words of Jesus in his gospel: “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love” (John 15:9-10). We abide in Him as we are filled with His love, and as we do that, we may indeed have confidence before Him.

               The Lord spoke of virtue in another revelation when He said this: “And ye must practise virtue and holiness before me continually” (Doctrine and Covenants 46:33). I think here that virtue is a synonym for holiness, and so as we become more holy like the Lord we become more confident in His presence. Another revelation helps explains why: “For intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom receiveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:40). This anecdote from Brad Wilcox highlights this idea: “I know a young man who just got out of prison—again. Each time two roads diverge in a yellow wood, he takes the wrong one—every time. When he was a teenager dealing with every bad habit a teenage boy can have, I said to his father, ‘We need to get him to EFY.’ I have worked with that program since 1985. I know the good it can do. His dad said, ‘I can’t afford that.’ I said, ‘I can’t afford it either, but you put some in, and I’ll put some in, and then we’ll go to my mom, because she is a real softy.’ We finally got the kid to EFY, but how long do you think he lasted? Not even a day. By the end of the first day he called his mother and said, ‘Get me out of here!’ Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly.” If we want to be confident in the presence of God, we must learn to be holy like He is holy. Otherwise, we will not want to be there.