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Posted on 02/10/2011 4:32:28 PM PST by Paragon Defender
Elder Marlin K. Jensen
Of the Presidency of the Seventy
Marlin K. Jensen, "“To Walk Humbly with Thy God”", Ensign, May 2001, 9
True humility will inevitably lead us to say to God, “Thy will be done.”
One of the memorable themes of last October’s general conference was that, in addition to being concerned about what we do, we Latter-day Saints ought also to pay attention to what we are and are striving to become. 1 With that principle in mind, I listened attentively last November to President Gordon B. Hinckley’s address to the youth of the Church. I was touched by the six priceless bits of wisdom he shared describing what youth ought to be. One of the six—“be humble”—was of special interest to me.
When I suggested to my wife several weeks ago that because of President Hinckley’s talk I was considering humility as a possible topic for my remarks today, she paused and, with a twinkle in her eye, teasingly replied, “That leaves you only a few days to gain some!” Being thus encouraged, I have reflected on what might be involved in obeying President Hinckley’s injunction to “be humble.”
To begin, it should come as no surprise that, in the estimation of some, humility ranks quite low on the scale of desirable character traits. Popular books have been written in recent years on integrity, common sense, civility, and a host of other virtues, but apparently there is little market for humility. Obviously, in these coarsening times when we are taught the art of negotiating by intimidation, and assertiveness has become a byword of the business world, those seeking to become humble will be a small and overlooked but critically important minority.
Consciously trying to acquire humility is also problematic. I remember once hearing one of my colleagues in the Seventy say about humility that “if you think you have it, you don’t.” He suggested we should try to develop humility and be sure we didn’t know when we got it, and then we would have it. But if we ever thought we had it, we wouldn’t. 2
This is one of the lessons C. S. Lewis teaches in his well-known Screwtape Letters. In letter XIV, a good man who is being recruited by a devil and his apprentice to their side is growing humble, and the devil remarks that “this is very bad.” With great insight, Lewis has the devil say to his associate, “Your patient has become humble; have you drawn his attention to the fact?” 3
Fortunately, the Savior has given us a model for developing humility. When His disciples approached Him and inquired, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He responded by placing a little child in their midst and stating, “Whosoever … shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” 4
In this passage the Savior teaches us that to become humble is to become as a child. How does a person become as a child, and what are the childlike qualities we ought to develop? King Benjamin, in his profound Book of Mormon sermon, provides guidance:
“For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.” 5
King Benjamin seems to teach that becoming like a child is a gradual process of spiritual development in which we are aided by the Holy Ghost and our reliance on Christ’s Atonement. Through this process, we will eventually acquire the childlike attributes of meekness, humility, patience, love, and spiritual submissiveness. True humility will inevitably lead us to say to God, “Thy will be done.” And because what we are does affect what we do, our submissiveness will be reflected in our reverence, gratitude, and willingness to accept callings, counsel, and correction.
A story contained in the family lore of Brigham Young’s descendants illustrates the submissive nature of humility. It recounts that in a public meeting the Prophet Joseph, possibly as a test, sternly rebuked Brigham Young for something he had done or something he was supposed to have done but hadn’t—the detail is unclear. When Joseph finished the rebuke, everyone in the room waited for Brigham Young’s response. This powerful man, later known as the Lion of the Lord, in a voice everyone could tell was sincere, said simply and humbly, “Joseph, what do you want me to do?” 6
The power of that response itself brings a feeling of humility. It reminds us that the greatest act of courage and love in the history of mankind—Christ’s atoning sacrifice—was also the greatest act of humility and submissiveness. Some may wonder if those seeking to become humble must forever defer to the strongly held opinions and positions of others. Certainly the Savior’s life evidences that true humility is anything but subservience, weakness, or servility.
Another helpful perspective on humility can be obtained by examining its antithesis—pride. Just as humility leads to other virtues such as modesty, teachableness, and unpretentiousness, pride leads to many other vices. In Latter-day Saint theology, it was through pride that Satan became the adversary of all truth. It was the growth of this arrogance, termed hubris, that the wise men of ancient Greece portrayed as the sure road to destruction.
Twelve years ago President Ezra Taft Benson delivered a powerful conference address declaring that pride is “the universal sin, the great vice.” 7 He taught that pride is essentially competitive in nature and made reference to this quote from C. S. Lewis: “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, cleverer, or better-looking than others. If every one else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone.” 8 What an interesting commentary on today’s highly competitive and thus prideful world. What an important reminder as well, for those of us who are blessed with the fulness of the gospel, to avoid both the condition and appearance of haughtiness or condescension in all of our human relationships.
I think sometimes of what life would be like if we all possessed greater humility.
Imagine a world in which we would replace I as the dominant pronoun.
Think of the impact on the pursuit of knowledge if being learned without being arrogant were the norm.
Consider the climate that would exist within a marriage or family—or any organization, for that matter—if through genuine humility mistakes were freely admitted and forgiven, if we were not afraid to praise others for fear they might gain on us, and if all were able to listen as well as we now verbalize.
Contemplate the advantages of life in a society in which considerations of status were only secondary, where citizens were more concerned with their responsibilities than their rights, and where those in authority might even occasionally step forward and humbly acknowledge, “I could be wrong.” Must our need to be “right” be so all-consuming? Surely this intolerance of others and their viewpoints is nothing less than the hubris the Greeks viewed and warned against as the suicidal sin. One wonders how differently even recent world history might be written if its principal participants had yielded to the gentle nudgings of humility.
Even more importantly, think of the role of humility in the process of repentance. Is it not humility, coupled with strong faith in Christ, that carries the transgressor to God in prayer, to the offended party in apology, and, where necessary, to his priesthood leader in confession?
I am grateful for examples of humility I have encountered in my life.
Once my father, in the heat and frustration of a humid July afternoon, overreacted to my youthful farming blunders and administered punishment which I felt was in excess of the crime. Later he approached me with an apology and a much-appreciated expression of confidence in my abilities. That humble expression has remained in my memory for more than 40 years.
I have seen a constant humility in my wonderful wife. Like Nephi turning to Lehi for direction after Lehi had momentarily faltered, she has stayed at my side for 34 years and consistently supported and loved me “notwithstanding my weakness.” 9
I am often deeply moved by evidences of humility in the scriptures. Consider John the Baptist declaring of the Savior, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” 10 Think of Moroni pleading with us not to condemn him because of his imperfections, but to thank God that He made Moroni’s imperfections manifest so that we can learn to be wiser than Moroni was. 11 Nor should we forget the exclamation of Moses, who, after experiencing the greatness of God and His creations, acknowledged that “for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” 12 Is not Moses’ recognition of our complete dependence on God the beginning of true humility?
I resonate to the English author John Ruskin’s memorable statement that “the first test of a truly great man is his humility.” He continued: “I do not mean, by humility, doubt of his own power. … [But really] great men … have a curious … feeling that … greatness is not in them, but through them. … And they see something Divine … in every other man … , and are endlessly, foolishly, incredibly merciful.” 13
The Old Testament prophet Micah, like our living prophet, President Hinckley, was concerned about nurturing the development of humility. To his people he said, “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” 14
God bless us all to walk humbly with Him and with all men. I testify that President Gordon B. Hinckley is a true prophet and that his counsel to “be humble” comes from God. I testify that Jesus Christ, God’s meek and lowly Son, personifies humility. I know that it will be in humility that we one day kneel at the Savior’s feet to be judged of Him. 15 May we live our lives to prepare for that humble moment is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
And I still don’t like Rommney
i really hope she is not active or try to hypnotize me in my sleep and I wake up with hair like Romney.
Come on! ye prosecutors! ye false swearers! All hell, boil over! Ye burning mountains, roll down your lava! for I will come out on the top at last. I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet. You know my daily walk and conversation. I am in the bosom of a virtuous and good people. How I do love to hear the wolves howl! When they can get rid of me, the devil will also go.
Joseph Smith 1844
It’s not exactly humble to believe that with some effort you can score enough points to be equal with God.
It’s not humble to believe that your priesthood powers make you one of the kings of the earth.
Humility and Mormonism are contradictions in terms.
Mormon Missionary Deception Method:
1. Convince you of their sincerity
2. Trick you into expressing faith first in the Book of Mormon by praying and asking for a sign (this takes you off the objective ground of Biblical truth and puts you into subjective ground of feelings)
3. Convince you that the Bible has errors in its translation
4. Trick you into expressing faith in the prophet Joseph Smith
5. Trick you into expressing faith in the Restoration of the “Gospel” (see Galatians Chapter one)
6. Get you all the way into the baptismal font...
..........................................................
7. ONLY THEN... you will learn the true DEVIANT doctrines of
Mormonism. At this point, it is too late! You only have
feelings as a basis of truth! You will believe anything.
..........................................................
Such as the following “truths” taught in mormonism ...
The 3 Mormon Earth gods:
The mormon “Heavenly Father” used to be a regular Joe, but became God.
The Jesus of mormonism was a created spirit being who became one of the three mormon earth gods
The mormonic Holy Spirit is also a created spirit being. He doesn’t have a body because he is on probation! Yes, he was naughty. He sinned.
In short, the mormon earth gods are sinful, created spirit beings. But there is more...
The FOURTH Mormon Earth God!
The Mormon Heavenly Mother God!
Yes, believe it or not, it turns out there is a mormonic “Mother God!”
... SHE and the father god have sex
... SHE is eternally pregnant
... SHE pops out spirit children who will some day get a human body on earth
... SHE is probably not alone! Mormons still believe and teach eternal polygamy.
The Mormonic Pantheon of gods:
There are TRILLIONS of mormon gods on other planets.
Hindus have approximately 350 million gods. They are
pikers compared to mormons!
How do they get so many gods? They manufacture more all the
time:
... Any mormon male can be a God with his own planet, mother goddesses, and spirit kids to worship him.
... Becoming a mormon god means lots of works to attain the god-level. This is why you see mormons working so hard. Now you know why.
... Speaking of levels, heaven has three levels.
... All the trillions of gods in the mormon pantheon get together regularly over spring break in Kolob Beach to “counsel together”
What will your life be like as a mormon?
... you have to give 10%?
... your bishop is there to ask if you gave your FULL tithe
... your bishop is also there to ask many probing, personal, embarrassing questions
... Did we mention you will
... you will have to complete Masonic Temple rituals that involve strangers touching your private parts
... You will have to wear magic underwear 24/7/365
Once inside the Morg, you have to accept it ALL to move up the chain towards Godhood.
Do you deny your founder Joseph Smith was a convicted criminal?
Do you deny that his successor Brigham Young engineeredand ordered the “Mountain Meadows Massacre” like Al Capone engineered his Valentine for Bugs Moran and the north-siders?
Your evasion and silence in answering my questions speaks volumes.
She seems very nice and im just looking to date her not toss her into a volcano. But thanks!
And if, as they so strongly believe, Joseph Smith, Jr., will sit next to Jesus when we pass through the Pearly Gates to ALSO decide if we go to Heaven or nor, why do they have the name Jesus Christ in their heading? Should it be the
Join the club. The membership increases daily.
Your evasion and silence in answering my questions speaks volumes
On the contrary. The answers to your “issues” are found at the links provided. Not silent and no evasion. Just not playing games.
And which ‘god’ of the mormon pantheon of ‘gods’ would that be pd? Orbiting the star Kolob.
Your hair would be the least of your worries as a mormon.
I’m wondering about Bobby Jindal — he’s had a lot of good experience as a governor.
Those alleged answers are nothing but pure prevarication, a complete tissue of lies, and a collection of falsehoods and fibs.
I’ll trust the records of the New York State court system before I ever believe anything in a science-fiction book that’s only a half-notch above the tripe written by L. Ron Hubbard.
Yinz do have a terrific choir, though, I will hand you that.
Look at the time Christ spent with his followers Teaching them.PD tells them to look it up.
Christ told us to feed the hungry. Following PD’s approach, s/he tells the hungry to go to the fields and find some food. S/He tells the thirsty to go dig a well. S/He tells the naked to go weave some cloth and make some clothing on your own.
In the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says:
You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. —Matthew 5:38-42
But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. —Luke 6:27-31
You are not acting as Christ wants you to act, or how your church leaders tell you to act.
Excellent twisting! You’ll fit in just fine with the regular anti-Gang. Assuming you aren’t one of them on another account. Whatever I don’t suppose it matters.
You’ll be taught plenty at the sites provided. Is that what you want? I am getting that impression from your post.
You are right about one thing. I do get annoyed and perhaps aggravated at my brothers and sisters on FR that behave in a very un-Christlike manner towards me and others of my faith. I do better than I used to but there’s definitely room for improvement. Thanks for the reminder.
What was twisted? Please explain. Go through my post and show me what was twisted, and why.
Or is that to be found at the "links" you never sent as well?
No, I want an answer. I can't find my answer at links you never provided to me.
I want an answer to a simple question. Be like Christ. Christ taught his disciples, often quoting scripture, often using parables. Christ never told his disciples to go to links he never provided.
Christ wants you to be a teacher - "In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!" Hebrews 5:12 Give me one drop of milk, to understand Mormon writings.
And don't make false accusations. That is not Christ-like either.
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