When did King Benjamin invite his people to believe? After they fell to the ground and pleaded with God to purify their hearts. After they received a remission of their sins and were filled with joy and peace. After they cried aloud with one voice, “We believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things” (Mosiah 4:1-3).
Why would he extend the following invitation to a group of people who had just affirmed their belief?
Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.
And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them.
Mosiah 4:9-10
When Jesus explained to the father of an afflicted young man that all things are possible to those who believe, the father responded tearfully, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief” (Mark 9:24). Elder Jeffrey R. Holland referred to this father’s faith as “new and still partial” (“‘Lord, I Believe,'” General Conference, April 2013). So one explanation for Benjamin’s invitation is that his people were at the beginning of a journey. Their prayers and expression of belief represented a newfound faith which would grow and mature over time as they nourished it.
A second reason for the invitation might be that Benjamin wanted his people to convert their expressed belief into action. As I’ve written before, his list of beliefs moves quickly from the foundational doctrine that there is a God to a recognition that we need to do something to reach out to Him. Thus, this invitation serves as a useful transition from their affirmation of belief to the set of practical actions he will now invite them to take in order to sustain that belief.
Embedded in Benjamin’s invitation is an important principle: Acknowledged uncertainty creates space for belief. He encouraged his people to recognize that God knows more than we do. That seems pretty obvious, but as Alma would later teach, “If a man knoweth a thing he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it” (Alma 32:18). Perhaps the simple statement, “I don’t know,” unlocks the door for us to say, “I believe.”
Today, I will accept King Benjamin’s invitation to believe. I will nourish my belief, so that it can continue to grow. I will act on my belief, so that it can generate tangible outcomes. I will make room for belief, by acknowledging what I don’t know.