Behold, Here I Am

The Lord promised a vast posterity to Abraham and Sarah. That blessing took its time in arriving, or, rather, it arrived in the Lord’s time. However, the Lord put Abraham’s faith to the test when He asked him to sacrifice his son, Isaac, who was the blessing for which they had prayed and had waited for so long. We may have read this scriptural account many times, but how often have we put ourselves in Abraham’s shoes?

It is difficult to even imagine a tender father’s feelings before such an assignment. However, Abraham’s determination in deciding to obey never ceases to amaze me as he prepared to go to a mountain at Moriah and offer up the requested sacrifice. In an expression of willingness and submission to Heavenly Father’s will, his answer ever remained, “Behold, here I am.” (See Genesis 22:1–2.)

In return for his obedience, he was blessed with the preservation of Isaac’s life, as well as with wonderful and infinite blessings for himself, for Sarah, and for their posterity (see Genesis 22:15–18).

The Savior’s Submission

Without a doubt, the supreme example of obedience and submission to Heavenly Father is centered on the Savior, Jesus Christ. He showed His willingness to obey by coming to this earth; by being baptized, being clean and perfect; and by giving His life as an offering and taking upon Him the pains, afflictions, infirmities, sins, and death of His people, that He might know how to succor us in the flesh (see Alma 7:11–13).

So intense was the experience that, for a moment, it caused Him to ask if there was any way to let that bitter cup pass. He then immediately said, “Nevertheless, not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42)—in other words, “Behold, here I am”—thereby showing His willingness to do the Father’s will.

How can we cultivate that willingness to offer a “Behold, here I am” in response to every request that Heavenly Father makes of us as members of the Church, or sometimes on a personal level?

Paul taught the Romans, “Love is the fulfilling of the law” (Romans 13:10). If I wanted to find a word that synonymously replaced the phrase “fulfilling of the law,” I think the word obedience would quickly come to mind. Hence, we could say that love is obedience. And so the Savior’s statement “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) makes a great deal of sense.

We might respond with a “Behold, here I am” or, in the words of Nephi, “I will go and do” (1 Nephi 3:7). In our modern vernacular, we might say, “Of course I’m willing to do what Heavenly Father commands, no matter the circumstances.”

What I would like to emphasize, though, is the love-obedience relationship, meaning that we obey the Father because we love Him. I believe that choosing to obey is one of the best ways to clearly declare our love for Him. “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26), and personally I don’t think love for Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ without obedience is very alive either.

How do we increase our love for Him and our obedience to Him? The Savior said, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3). Knowing Jesus Christ—and, through Him, the Father—enables us to know of the love that They have for us and of the indescribable things that They have done and yet will do for us, including during the difficult moments that we experience in this mortal life. Knowing of Them changes our hearts, making us desire to follow Their examples in our actions and to be willing to say, in word and deed, “Behold, here I am.” This willingness is reflected in a desire to read the scriptures or in addressing Heavenly Father in prayer.

“Behold, here I am” can be a response to a call to serve a mission or to be more consecrated in obeying commandments such as keeping the Sabbath holy, honoring our parents, or seeking to live a morally clean life. “Behold, here I am” is the expression that constantly accompanies Christ’s disciples, even when the requested sacrifice affects that which we desire the most or for which we have paid a high price.

This willingness to obey is very valuable, especially with respect to the covenants that we made when we were baptized or entered the temple. Can you imagine what our lives would be like if we constantly thought, “Behold, here I am” when taking upon us the name of Christ or in order to remember Him always and keep His commandments? Partaking of the sacrament invites us to renew that commitment, which should be reflected in our actions during the week. The same applies when we go to the temple as we make or remember the covenants that we make there.

I recall a conversation I had with a newly married couple many years ago while serving as a bishop. One night, they had a long, heated discussion regarding the payment of tithing. The young husband had gone through a difficult week at work and wanted to save the money he had earned for some of their personal expenses. However, I remember the young wife’s words when, in front of her husband, she said, “Bishop, I’m willing to not make those expenses and even to stop eating, if necessary, but I want to pay tithing and obey the Lord.”

So resounding was that “Behold, here I am,” expressed with such great testimony by the young wife, that the husband and I felt a strong spirit during the conversation. In the end, I don’t know if it was out of his own desire or because he was persuaded by his wife, but the husband ended up paying his tithing that weekend.

The following Sunday, prior to the meetings, the young husband asked for a quick word with me. With a countenance that was different from the previous week, he told me, “Bishop, you know that last week I finally paid my tithing, and I was afraid that I wouldn’t have enough money for food, but I just wanted you to know that this week we had twice the amount of money for food we usually have. Bishop, it was a miracle, and I want to always see those miracles in my life.” To me, it was as if that young man was telling me, “Bishop, I’m willing to respond with a ‘Behold, here I am’ to whatever God asks of me.”

The Lord has said that He is bound when we do what He asks (see Doctrine and Covenants 82:10). Do we really believe in the strictness of that promise?

Perhaps the blessings do not come in our time or the way we want, but I testify to you that the promise is real and true. It demands love for Him, submission, a desire to do His will, and living as disciples of Christ. He will help us and bless us to understand and keep our covenants. That way, when He asks us to do His will, may we reply with a resounding “Behold, here I am, Lord!”