Filling our Lamps With Faith

Before he died King Benjamin called his people together to give them his last words of counsel and advice. One of the first things he taught is that when people obey the Lord, “he doth immediately bless you” (Mosiah 2:24). This is true.

Whenever we obey the Lord, we are immediately blessed, but because we don’t see or hear or feel the blessing “dropping down” upon us, we usually don’t recognize or even realize it is happening. Or at other times we obey because we want a specific blessing and when it doesn’t come we begin to doubt or fear. But that is because we don’t understand the blessing of obedience. Remember “There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—and when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (D&C 130:20-21). So what is the blessing attached to the law of obedience? It is faith.

Every time we are obedient to a commandment of the Lord, we are immediately blessed with an increase in our faith. As Elder McConkie once said, “Faith is a gift of God bestowed as a reward for personal righteousness. It is always given when righteousness is present, and the greater the measure of obedience to God's laws the greater will be the endowment of faith” (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.264).

What this means is that every time you choose to obey the Lord you are gain a little more faith and in this way we progress through life growing “line upon line” and “precept upon precept.”  (D&C 98:12). Or, as I like to think of it, it is like the five wise virgins in the parable of the Ten Virgins who drop by drop added oil to their lamps so that when the Bridegroom called, they were ready.