How to Gain the Fulness of Charity

Complete the Atonement by Becoming Perfect

Mormon tells us what we need to do to have Charity.

“48 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. Amen.” – Moro. 7:48

As with many scriptures, there are multiple interpretations, but only the right interpretation will help us to understand the action we must take to receive the blessing we desire.

Most people read Mormon’s instruction to say, “pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart asking the Father to fill you with this love”.

The problem with this interpretation is that it would be like praying and asking God to know what a karela tastes like when you have never seen or tasted it.

If you have never experienced charity, you have no reference point to draw on. This is the hardest type of revelation to receive and the easiest to get wrong.

Another way to read Mormon’s instruction provides us with a formula. The scriptures often give us formulas because many things cannot be obtained directly. The desired goal is often the natural results of doing something that seems unrelated. Gaining charity is a perfect example of this concept. If we seek Charity directly, we will not find it. Instead, we have to do something unintuitive to gain charity.

In this case, if we desire to be filled with Charity, Mormon tells us that we need to “pray with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love”.

Pay close attention to the wording. There are two ways to read what he’s saying.

Pray to God with all the energy of your heart asking to be filled with this love.
Sincerely pray to God with all the energy of your heart about the things that you truly need and desire and you will experience the by product of sincere prayer which is charity.

If the first interpretation is true, then anyone who prays with all the energy of their heart to have charity will get it. While this may be true, it may be difficult to pray with all the energy of your heart for something you don’t understand or truly desire. This means that some will struggle to follow this advice.

If the second interpretation is true, then Mormon is telling us to pray with all the energy of our heart for the things that we really care about. He promises that doing so will naturally result in gaining charity for others. (This is the same advice that King Benjamin gave in Mosiah 4:11-22 as will be shown.)

Why would praying with all the energy of our heart result in being filled with charity? Because when we pray for the things that we need with all the energy of our heart, our prayers will be answered and we will experience the love of God toward us. We will experience God’s Charity toward us, even though we are unworthy of His love. This then becomes an unconscious lesson that teaches us in a way that becomes part of our core character. We learn what charity is because we first experience it, God’s love for us. When we experience God’s love for us, (Stage 2 – Pure love from Christ), and realize our own unworthiness, then we begin to love God back, (Stage 3 – Pure Love for Christ). Having experienced God’s love for us even when we are unworthy of it, we naturally begin to forgive others and extend love to them when they are unworthy of our love just as God does for us, (Stage 4 – Pure love like Christ). Without even knowing that it’s happening, we begin to mirror God’s example.

In many instances, we go to God as the beggar realizing that we are asking for help with the problems we brought on ourselves. In His love, God helps us and gives us the example of how we should help others, even when they created for themselves the problems they are facing. We learn true charity from God who has charity for us.

King Mosiah taught this very same thing showing the formula and the natural result of always remembering “His goodness and long-suffering toward [us], unworthy creatures.” King Benjamin also gave us the promise that if we did this, we would “always retain a remission of our sins.”

“And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so 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.

12 And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.

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16 And also, ye yourselves will succor those that stand in need of your succor; ye will administer of your substance unto him that standeth in need; and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to perish.

17 Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just—

18 But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God, (the Law of Universal Application applied).

19 For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?

20 And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy.

21 And now, if God, who has created you, on whom you are dependent for your lives and for all that ye have and are, doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance that ye have one to another.

22 And if ye judge the man who putteth up his petition to you for your substance that he perish not, and condemn him, how much more just will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God, (the Law of Universal Application again), to whom also your life belongeth; and yet ye put up no petition, nor repent of the thing which thou hast done.” – Mosiah 4:11-22

It’s interesting to point out here that King Benjamin tells us that we can always retain a remission of our sins even though we remain “unworthy creatures”. At no time does he say we become worthy of forgiveness. To the contrary, he tells us that we remain unworthy of His goodness and mercy. As will be explained later, having or retaining a remission of our sins is not and will not be based on our worthiness.

How do we gain Charity? We gain it by coming to know God. God is love and when we come to know God, we come to understand what that really means.

When we realize how we receive God’s love and mercy when we are so undeserving, we naturally begin to mirror God by giving our love and mercy to others who are undeserving of it just as God does for us. This happens naturally as we pray with all the sincerity of heart for those things we need and desire. As we petition God for His grace and mercy, we begin to hear the cries of others. We begin to self reflect and realize that if we turn away others, then we are hypocrites asking for God to not turn us away.

“7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

12 No man hath seen God at any time, except them who believe. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

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16 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.

17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

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19 We love him, because he first loved us.

20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

21 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” – 1 John 4

Once, a rich young man asked Jesus what he needed to do to have eternal life. Jesus knew the Principle of Perfection and simply thought to himself “how can this rich young man love his neighbor as he does himself?”

The answer is so obvious that anyone who knows the Principle of Perfection could have responded with the same wisdom as Christ.

“And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?

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21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.” – Matt. 19:16-22

NOTICE: Jesus showed the connection between eternal life and perfection. The young man asked what he needed to do “to have eternal life” and Jesus responded saying, “If thou wilt be perfect…”.

In a single move, this rich young man could have been perfect, by simply loving the poor as much as he loved himself.

In another instance, a lawyer also asked Jesus how to gain eternal life. Again the Lord responded acknowledging the same Principle of Perfection, (love your neighbor as yourself), as the way to gain eternal life.

The lawyer wanted to excuse himself from loving his enemy and asked, “Who is my neighbor?” The Lord responded by giving the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

In the parable, Jesus referenced a Priest and a Levite, who were both considered “holy men” who kept the law, and a Samaritan. Jews and Samaritans despised and hated each other or in other words, they were enemies. In the parable, the holy men did not love their neighbor who was among their own people, but the Samaritan showed love to his national enemy.

“And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?

27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.” – Luke 10:25-37

In this parable, Jesus is again asked the question, “what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered saying that eternal life is gained by loving your neighbor, even when your neighbor is your enemy like the Jews were to the Samaritans.

The Law Made Nothing Perfect

Many people believe that perfection means obeying the law and commandments perfectly, however, the scriptures are abundantly clear that perfection does NOT come by perfect obedience to the laws and commandments of God.

“For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.” – Heb. 7:19

“And men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil. And the law is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is justified; or, by the law men are cut off. Yea, by the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever.

6 Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth.” – 2 Nephi 2:5-6

Obedience to the law in our actions doesn’t make us perfect. The wicked keep the law outwardly for fear of the punishment, but they are still wicked and will have no reward. Keeping the law by not killing someone doesn’t mean that you’re a good person. Laying down your life for your enemy does.

“We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for [our] brethren.

17 But whoso hath this world’s goods, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” – 1 John 3:14-18

Keeping the law in our heart by truly loving our enemy as well as our friends is what makes us perfect because in doing so, we fulfill the purpose of all the laws and the teachings of the prophets.

“If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:

9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.” – James 2:8-9

“Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

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10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” – Rom. 13:8-10

“For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” – Gal. 5:14

In each of these verses, we are told that if we love our neighbor as we do ourselves then we have fulfilled all the laws and all of the prophets. Anyone who has fulfilled all the laws and all the prophets is perfect.

Finally, we learn in D&C 76:50-70 that those who are to come forth in the resurrection of the Just and enter into their Celestial glory are made perfect through the atonement.

“These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood.

70 These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical.” – D&C 76:69-70

We will not be perfect until we can love our enemy as we do our friends. This is the concluding goal of the atonement of Jesus Christ.

“Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.