Pride and Humility

Alma 5:28 Behold, are ye stripped of pride? I say unto you, if ye are not ye are not prepared to meet God. 

Alma 7:23 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and gentle;

I read these 2 scriptures a few weeks ago as part of the assigned reading for Sunday School.  I noticed a difference in tone between the two chapters.  In the first, Alma was teaching the people of Zarahemla.  They had strayed away from their faith and were walking their own path.  In the second, he was teaching a people who were striving to be righteous.

For those who were wicked he reminded them of the Lord's blessings in the lives of their ancestors and told them to get rid of their pride.  For those who were righteous, he preached of Christ's coming and told them to be humble.  

I thought about this difference a lot and the fact that he didn't say be humble to the first group.  I had always thought of humility being the absence of pride, but maybe it is something more.

A few days before I read this, I was taught about the difference between those who will inherit the different degrees of glory.  Those in the telestial have disobeyed God.  Those in the terrestrial keep the "thou shalt not" commandments.  Those in the celestial have kept the "thou shalt" commandments.  So to inherit all God has, it isn't enough to just avoid doing bad things.  You need to do the righteous things he has asked you to do.

In the context of pride versus humility, I realized that avoiding pride is keeping a "thou shalt not" commandment.  Humility isn't just avoiding pride.  It is a "thou shalt" commandment.  It is actively submitting your will to the Lord. It is looking to Him for guidance rather than thinking you have it all figured out.  Pride is placing yourself above God.  Avoiding pride means you aren't putting yourself in opposition to God.  Humility is realizing that His ways are higher than your ways and asking Him to lead you.