Thirteenth Article of Faith and Charity

 

All Who Have Endured Valiantly

(Doctrine and Covenants 121:29)

By Elder David A. Bednar

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Please consider how these two overarching dimensions of charity are described in the thirteenth article of faith. The first half of the statement emphasizes charitable and gracious acts: “We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men.”

The second half of the statement emphasizes the ongoing nature of our spiritual transformation: “We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.”

This concluding article of faith is an admonition for us to do good, to be good, and to endure to the end in coming unto and following the Savior and receiving the heavenly gift to love as He loves.

Enduring Through the End Through Charity

 

All Who Have Endured Valiantly

(Doctrine and Covenants 121:29)

By Elder David A. Bednar

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

The Savior’s restored gospel invites us to be spiritually transformed—not merely to improve our behavior. As we align our character, desires, actions, and what we truly love more closely with God’s will, the Savior can bring about a comprehensive and complete change in us....

The very name “spiritual gifts” teaches a vital lesson. All such gifts are given by God according to His will and timing; they are not results we earn solely through focused effort and personal discipline....

Mormon testified that “charity is the pure love of Christ” and “the greatest of all” spiritual gifts. Significantly, the word endure is used in the scriptures to define and describe charity.

For example, “charity … endureth forever,” “suffereth long, … seeketh not her own, … beareth all things, … endureth all things.” And, as you sisters know well, “charity never faileth.”

Mormon also taught that “whoso is found possessed of [the spiritual gift of charity] at the last day, it shall be well with him.” Note the double meaning of the word of in this verse. We can possess charity, but ultimately charity should possess us....

For disciples of the Savior, charity encompasses both what we do and what we can become as this spiritual gift ultimately possesses us. At a fundamental level, charity certainly includes acts of compassion, kindness, and generosity directed toward others. But at a higher and even holier level, charity is the very essence of the “end” toward which we are enduring—becoming new creatures in Christ....

As we live as He invites us to live and with His help, our nature and character over time increasingly become more like His.

As we follow, love, and serve the Savior, we gradually focus less on our own desires and interests and more on understanding and addressing the needs of others. We do not merely perform benevolent deeds; rather, our state of being is changed and becomes increasingly Christlike. Charity, then, ultimately possesses us....

I am now going to read three scriptures that contain the phrase “endure to the end.” I will insert the phrase “is possessed of the pure love of Christ” in each verse so we can learn a vital and eternal lesson.

1. The Savior taught His ancient Apostles: “He that endureth to the end [or is possessed of the pure love of Christ] shall be saved.”

2. Nephi testified: “I heard a voice from the Father, saying: Yea, the words of my Beloved are true and faithful. He that endureth to the end [or is possessed of the pure love of Christ], the same shall be saved.”

3. Alma declared: “He that findeth mercy and endureth to the end [or is possessed of the pure love of Christ] the same shall be saved.”

Enduring to the end is linked inextricably to the spiritual gift of charity. Enduring to the end is not merely a relentless determination to grit our teeth, hold on to the limits of our physical strength and mental capacity, and push through the challenges and adversities of mortal life; it is so much more than that.

Lucifer Rebelled

 

Partakers of the Divine Nature

(2 Peter 1:4)

By Elder David A. Bednar

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Lucifer did not present a plan that was voted down by a majority of the participants in the premortal council. He is not a sympathetic figure who lost an election. He rebelled! Pride, arrogance, and selfishness motivated his revolt against the Father’s plan.

The Sacrament is an Invitation to Repent Sincerely

 

Humble Souls at Altars Kneel

By Elder Jeremy R. Jaggi

Of the Seventy

Elder David A. Bednar taught that “the ordinance of the sacrament is a holy and repeated invitation to repent sincerely and to be renewed spiritually. The act of partaking of the sacrament, in and of itself, does not remit sins. But as we prepare conscientiously and participate in this holy ordinance with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, then the promise is that we may always have the Spirit of the Lord to be with us. And by the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost as our constant companion, we can always retain a remission of our sins.”

David A. Bednar, “Always Retain a Remission of Your Sins,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2016, 61–62.

Blessings From Paying Tithing

 Elder Bednar provided some examples of unexpected blessings that can come from paying tithing: “Sometimes we may ask God for success, and He gives us physical and mental stamina. We might plead for prosperity, and we receive enlarged perspective and increased patience, or we petition for growth and are blessed with the gift of grace. He may bestow upon us conviction and confidence as we strive to achieve worthy goals. And when we plead for relief from physical, mental, and spiritual difficulties, He may increase our resolve and resilience.”³

Elder Bednar also suggested that sometimes “the blessing that comes to us through heavenly windows may be greater capacity to act and change our own circumstances rather than expecting our circumstances to be changed by someone or something else.”⁴ See, for example, how a husband and wife from Argentina felt this in their life in their story “Why Do You Still Pay Tithing?”

David A. Bednar, “The Windows of Heaven,” 18.

The Windows of Heaven

October 2013 general conference

prosperity, possessions, and ease constitute a potent mixture that can lead even the righteous to drink the spiritual poison of pride.

 

In the Space of Not Many Years

By Elder David A. Bednar

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

How could a once-righteous people become hardened and wicked in such a short period of time? How could people so quickly forget the God who had blessed them so abundantly?

In a powerful and profound way, the negative example of the Nephites is instructive for us today.

“Pride … began to enter … into the hearts of the people who professed to belong to the church of God … because of their exceedingly great riches and their prosperity in the land.”

“[They] set [their] hearts upon the riches and the vain things of this world” “because of that pride which [they] … suffered to enter [into their] hearts, which … lifted [them] up beyond that which is good because of [their] exceedingly great riches!”

Ancient voices from the dust plead with us today to learn this everlasting lesson: prosperity, possessions, and ease constitute a potent mixture that can lead even the righteous to drink the spiritual poison of pride.

Allowing pride to enter into our hearts can cause us to mock that which is sacred; disbelieve in the spirit of prophecy and revelation; trample under our feet the commandments of God; deny the word of God; cast out, mock, and revile against the prophets; and forget the Lord our God and “not desire that the Lord [our] God, who hath created [us], should rule and reign over [us].”

Therefore, if we are not faithful and obedient, we can transform the God-given blessing of prosperity into a prideful curse that diverts and distracts us from eternal truths and vital spiritual priorities. We always must be on guard against a pride-induced and exaggerated sense of self-importance, a misguided evaluation of our own self-sufficiency, and seeking self instead of serving others.

As we pridefully focus upon ourselves, we also are afflicted with spiritual blindness and miss much, most, or perhaps all that is occurring within and around us. We cannot look to and focus upon Jesus Christ as the “mark” if we only see ourselves....

At the individual level, each of us must “beware of pride, lest [we] become as the Nephites of old.”

May I suggest that if you or I believe we are sufficiently strong and stalwart to avoid the arrogance of pride, then perhaps we already are suffering from this deadly spiritual disease. Simply stated, if you or I do not believe we could be afflicted with and by pride, then we are vulnerable and in spiritual danger. In the space of not many days, weeks, months, or years, we might forfeit our spiritual birthright for far less than a mess of pottage.

If, however, you or I believe we could be afflicted with and by pride, then we consistently will do the small and simple things that will protect and help us become “as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon [us].” “Blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble.”

Preach the Gospel and Seek After Our Dead,

 

With the Power of God in Great Glory

(1 Nephi 14:14)

By Elder David A. Bednar

The lessons Joseph Smith learned from Moroni influenced every aspect of his ministry. For example, at a solemn assembly held in the Kirtland Temple on April 6, 1837, the Prophet declared, “After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the Gospel.”⁷

Almost precisely seven years later, on April 7, 1844, Joseph Smith delivered a sermon known today as the King Follett Discourse. He declared in that address, “The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead.”⁸

But how can preaching the gospel and seeking after our dead both be the single greatest duty and responsibility God has placed upon us? I believe the Prophet Joseph Smith was emphasizing in both statements the fundamental truth that covenants, entered into through authoritative priesthood ordinances, can bind us to the Lord Jesus Christ and are the essential core of the work of salvation and exaltation on both sides of the veil.

Missionary and temple and family history work are complementary and interrelated aspects of one great work that focuses upon the sacred covenants and ordinances that enable us to receive the power of godliness in our lives and, ultimately, return to the presence of Heavenly Father. Thus, the two statements by the Prophet that initially may appear contradictory, in fact, highlight the focal point of this great latter-day work.