Charity

The scriptures teach us that we need faith, hope, and charity to be able to enter the kingdom of God.    In our scripture mastery today, Mormon teaches us about Charity.  Moroni 7:45 is today's scripture mastery:

45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Charity is much more than just giving things to those less fortunate than we are.  We must have charity, or nothing we do here on earth will matter. . .Paul taught the Colosians (Colosions 3:12-14) that we need to have charity even more than we need to forgive others, or more than we need to be kind, humble, meek, and longsuffering.

Joseph Smith taught that without charity, we can do nothing (Doctrine and Covenants 18:19)

Mormon continues teaching about charity with these verses: (Moroni 7:46-48)

 46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

 47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.

 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.

Just as Mormon taught about Charity never failing, Paul taught the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 13:8) that Charity lasts for ever:

8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

The Relief Society, which is a women's organization in our church, and which has been around since 1842, has taken their motto from those two verses.  The motto of the Relief Society is "Charity never faileth."  Sister Julie B Beck, the current General Relief Society President, gave a talk in 2008 about the purpose of the Relief Society.  She said:

To fulfill the purpose of Relief Society, the Lord has commissioned each Relief Society sister and the organization as a whole to:

1. Increase in faith and personal righteousness.
   
2. Strengthen families and homes.
   
3. Serve the Lord and His children.
   

Each one of these responsibilities supports and reinforces the other two. When we increase our faith, the result of that effort strengthens our family. When we serve the Lord and His children, our faith and capacity for righteousness increase. The three responsibilities are inseparably connected.

The women (and men) than do those 3 steps that Sister Beck listed will be well on their way to gaining charity that we all need.  Let us all do our best to gain that charity, to go along with faith in Christ, and Hope that the scriptures teach us that we need.