I count it a rich privilege/blessing to have so much ‘undiluted counsel’ from the Lord through our modern day Prophets! Their lives have brought forth rich examples of how the Lord would have me live; what He would have me focus on and what I should leave alone to keep my mind and thoughts less cluttered… thereby allowing greater personal potential, growth, and purity of thought to His purposes. Rich are the opportunities for personal peace when I embrace Christ by following their examples and teachings as from our Redeemer Himself. On the road of this mortal path I am definitely better off for listening and paying attention to such wise counsel from the Lord’s living oracles, than were I to shift my spiritual gaze to worldly examples, distractions and rhetoric. (The following is rather lengthy, but it comes as a ‘package’ expanding on the words of Peter in the New Testament.) kdm
President Ezra Taft Benson was President of the Church and Prophet from November 1985 to his passing in May 1994. Many and powerful were his teachings. He said: “The Apostle Peter spoke of the process by which a person can be made a partaker “of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). This is important, for if we truly become partakers of the divine nature, we shall become like Him. Let us examine closely what Peter teaches us about this process. Here is what he said:
“And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity” (2 Peter 1:5–7). The virtues outlined by Peter are part of the divine nature, or the Savior’s character. These are the virtues we are to emulate if we would be more like Him. Let us discuss a few of these important traits.
The first characteristic, to which all the others are added, is faith. Faith is the foundation upon which a godlike character is built. …Peter goes on to say that we must add to our faith virtue. … Virtuous behavior implies that [a person] has pure thoughts and clean actions. He will not lust in his heart, for to do so is to “deny the faith” and to lose the Spirit (D&C 42:23)—and there is nothing more important in this work than the Spirit. …
Virtue is akin to holiness, an attribute of godliness. [We] should actively seek for that which is virtuous and lovely and not that which is debasing or sordid. Virtue will garnish [our] thoughts unceasingly (see D&C 121:45). How can any man indulge himself in the evils of pornography, profanity, or vulgarity and consider himself totally virtuous? …
The next step Peter describes in the growth process is to add knowledge to our faith and virtue. The Lord has told us that “it is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance” (D&C 131:6). In another place God commanded, “Seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith” (D&C 88:118). … While any study of truth is of value, the truths of salvation are the most important truths any person can learn. The Lord’s question, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Matthew 16:26) can be applied to educational pursuits as well as the pursuit of worldly goods. The Lord might also have asked, “For what is a man profited, if he shall learn everything in the world and not learn how to be saved?” …
Joining our spiritual education to our secular learning will help us keep focused on the things that matter most in this life. …
Another attribute described by Peter as being part of the divine nature is temperance. [A temperate person] is restrained in his emotions and verbal expressions. He does things in moderation and is not given to overindulgence. In a word, he has self-control. He is the master of his emotions, not the other way around. …
To our temperance we are to add patience. … Patience is another form of self-control. It is the ability to postpone gratification and to bridle one’s passions. In his relationships with loved ones, a patient man does not engage in impetuous behavior that he will later regret. Patience is composure under stress. A patient man is understanding of others’ faults.
A patient man also waits on the Lord. We sometimes read or hear of people who seek a blessing from the Lord, then grow impatient when it does not come swiftly. Part of the divine nature is to trust in the Lord enough to “be still and know that [he is] God” (D&C 101:16).
A [person] who is patient will be tolerant of the mistakes and failings of his loved ones. Because he loves them, he will not find fault nor criticize nor blame.
Another attribute mentioned by Peter is kindness. … One who is kind is sympathetic and gentle with others. He is considerate of others’ feelings and courteous in his behavior. He has a helpful nature. Kindness pardons others’ weaknesses and faults. Kindness is extended to all—to the aged and the young, to animals, to those low of station as well as the high.
These are the true attributes of the divine nature. Can you see how we become more Christlike as we are more virtuous, more kind, more patient, and more in control of our emotional feelings?
The Apostle Paul used some vivid expressions to illustrate that a member of the Church must be different from the world. He commended us to “put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27), “put off … the old man,” and “put on the new man” (Ephesians 4:22, 24).
The final and crowning virtue of the divine character is charity, or the pure love of Christ (see Moroni 7:47). If we would truly seek to be more like our Savior and Master, then learning to love as He loves should be our highest goal. Mormon called charity “the greatest of all” (Moroni 7:46).
The world today speaks a great deal about love, and it is sought for by many. But the pure love of Christ differs greatly from what the world thinks of love. Charity never seeks selfish gratification. The pure love of Christ seeks only the eternal growth and joy of others. …
The Savior declared that life eternal is to know the only true God and His Son Jesus Christ (see John 17:3). If this is true, and I bear you my solemn witness that it is true, then we must ask how we come to know God. The process of adding one godly attribute to another, as described by Peter, becomes the key to gaining this knowledge that leads to eternal life. Note Peter’s promise, which immediately follows the process described:
“For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:8; italics added).
From Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson, p. 299, see ‘A Christ Centered Life’, Chapter 12 (this quote is on page 299 of the manual)
