”And now I know that this love which thou hast had for the children of men is charity.” (LDS Ether 12:34, RE Ether 5:6)
In vision, Nephi saw a tree whose fruit was desirable to make one happy. This fruit is described as being, “most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure.” (LDS Alma 32:42, RE Alma 16:30)
This fruit, which is most desirable, is charity. It is the love of God. It’s not just any love. It certainly is not a kind of love that is common to the world. Those possessed with this kind of love even love their enemies. It is a kind of love which is very rare indeed. But those who are possessed with this kind of love, will be well at their last day. However they may die, if they have found and possess this love, their life has been fulfilling in deed. It is the prize and gift of a lifetime.
Charity is a kind of love which extends to all. When Jesus was asked, “who is my neighbor”, he told a parable of a “good Samaritan”, who as a Samaritan, would have been an “enemy” in Jewish eyes. Yet, the parable teaches that they should even have compassion for this kind of “neighbor”. God is charitable, even to those who, not only don’t believe in him, but actively fight against him. God does not love Nephi any more than he loves Laman and Lemuel. The difference is not found in God’s love for them but in who is willing to receive it and appreciate what it really is.
God’s love, this charity, is always there, available for everyone. It simply requires a person to wake up to what is all there for them. Some people wake up to this love while many are completely oblivious to it. Those who have found it, sometimes forget, and need to be awakened to it again. This kind of forgetting isn’t merely about hearing the idea alone but to also be filled with this kind of love and have it dwell within them. While one may have felt and been filled with this kind of love before, “can you feel so now? (LDS Alma 5:26, RE Alma 3:5)”
Charity isn’t merely a gift that will prove to be the difference after death, or to be enjoyed in heaven. It is most beneficial now, in this life. This is perhaps where it can do the most good, where it is the most foreign. You don’t have to go very far to find places where charity is needed, right now.
Since having this kind of love includes having charity for an enemy, one may ask, “but who is my enemy?” You often don’t have to look far to find someone who probably qualifies. As Jesus said:
“Do you suppose that I have come to give peace on earth? I tell you, nay, but rather division, for from henceforth there shall be five in one house, divided three against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; mother against the daughter, and daughter against the mother; the mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” (KJV Luke 12:51-53, RE Luke 8:28)
There are opportunities to develop and show charity even within a small family. The presence or lack of charity can be plainly manifest.
Charity is genuinely understanding another’s views, thoughts and feelings, even when they are at odds with its own. Charity can look upon another and attribute the best motives to their words and actions, even when they have been the source of trouble or anxiety for others. Charity can endure through troubles, even when there is little room to escape them. Charity is not only extended to strangers but especially to relationships that are always there, day in and day out. Charity does not need to escape the presence of an enemy but can dwell among them and even lay down their life for them.
Charity is not argumentative. It is not easily provoked, neither does it seek to provoke another.
Charity is not blind or ignorant of what is going on. It is not indifferent, though it can appear that way to some because it is not easily troubled while others may be very worked up. This kind of love melts away all fear. It looks with compassion upon those who suffer, even when the lack of charity in others is adding to their own suffering.
The whole path, the gospel path, or where it all leads, is to land a person at a place where they are partaking of and are filled with charity, the pure love of God. That is the ultimate fruit the gospel offers. Those who are possessed with this kind of love, it will be well with them at their last day. When this love is the whole point, the purpose, and how it began and where it ends, no wonder we are told to ”pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart that ye may be filled with this love.” (LDS Moroni 7:48, RE Moroni 7:9)
When Jesus says, “by their fruits, ye shall know them”, he is speaking to his disciples who know and are familiar with his love, which he commands them to also have and provides a way for them to do so. They can know and recognize this love in another because God bestows this kind of love, “upon all who are true followers of his Son Jesus Christ”. Those who are possessed with this love, are not possessed with an evil spirit or a devil, but with charity.
Charity is often the missing virtue. It is missing in so much of what is going on today. It’s presence can make the difference between an intolerable situation, to a place where one can be content with what has been allotted to them.