Being Christlike

In “As a Little Child,” President Jeffrey R. Holland, acting president of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, quotes Jesus when His apostles had a question about who would be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. “He ‘called a little child unto him, … And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.’” President Holland also quotes King Benjamin’s farewell sermon, “The natural man is an enemy to God, … and will be forever and ever, unless he . . . becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, … humble, … full of love, even as a child [responds] to his father.”

Looking at these verses in scripture, it becomes apparent that we must gain the Christlike attributes of submissiveness, humility, and love if we want to enter the kingdom of heaven and be “the greatest.” To me, being “the greatest” means one who will do the will of the Father in all things and glorify His name.

I want to delve into the three Christlike attributes mentioned above that children have inherently, which seem to fade as we mature.

Submissiveness

To be submissive is to be “ready to conform to the authority or will of others; meekly obedient.” In this context, being submissive means that we recognize the goodness of God and are willing to conform to His will and His plan.

Little children recognize that their parents are good and want what’s best for them. That trust equates to them listening to their parents and doing their parents’ will. Over time, however, children begin to lose the sense that their parents want what’s best for them. As a parent, I have watched each of our children go through a “rebel phase” where they feel they know more than we do. They rebel against our will and rules and want to try things “their way.” As parents, as long as the consequences won’t jeopardize their safety/freedom, involve serious injury, or put their life at risk, we can allow them to “find out for themselves.” It’s part of the maturing process, and several good lessons are learned.

So it is with us spiritually. When I was a child, I didn’t doubt God’s existence; I didn’t think the commandments were prohibitive. I knew that He wanted what was best for me, and I was willing to accept it wholeheartedly.

However, as I “grew up,” I started to think that I knew what was best. Even now, there are times when I “just want to do what I want to do,” and it doesn’t necessarily align with His will.

As in all things, Jesus is our example. One of His attributes is His submissiveness to God’s will. “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). He continues today to do His Father’s will; “I am Jesus Christ; I came by the will of the Father, and I do his will” (Doctrine and Covenants 19:24, emphasis added). Should we not follow the example of Jesus and continue to do the will of the Father?

Humility

The second attribute is humility. To be humble means to have or show a modest estimate of one’s own importance. This means that we don’t see ourselves as above or equal to God. We acknowledge His authority. This doesn’t mean we lack self-confidence. President Nelson stated in his April 2025 address, “When I speak of having confidence before God, I am referring to having confidence in approaching God right now! I am referring to praying with confidence that Heavenly Father hears us, that He understands our needs better than we do. I am referring to having confidence that He loves us more than we can comprehend, that He sends angels to be with us and with those we love. I am referring to having confidence that He yearns to help each of us reach our highest potential” (Confidence in the Presence of God, April 2025).

When we go to God, we can be both confident and humble. We can acknowledge Him and thank Him. We can have confidence that He loves us and won’t take advantage of us. We can be assured that He will bless us and help us.

Children, maybe because of their size, seem to inherently know how to be humble. Even so, I witnessed my children having confidence when interacting with adults. They showed proper respect, but also a confidence that was built through trust.

As we get older, we learn how to be proud. Pride is something to watch. We can be “proud” of our accomplishments. However, we should not let our pride take us into arrogance. When we are arrogant, we forget to be humble. We forget to acknowledge God and others. We become self-centered.

Jesus never allowed Himself to gain the pride that leads to arrogance. He always remembered why He was on the earth. He always remembered to thank His Father. He was always compassionate, even when He cleared the temple (see Matthew 21:12).

Full of Love

Have you ever had a baby look at you and have their face light up? It’s one of the most rewarding events of being a parent. There are moments throughout a child’s life when they look at their parents, and the parent knows the look is pure love. President Holland states, “As a rule, even in their youngest years, children love so easily, they forgive so readily, they laugh so delightfully that even the coldest, hardest heart can melt.”

What happens to us that we lose that ability? How does that heart full of love start to empty? It may just be part of growing up, maturing, that empties the heart of love. Most often, the heart only empties partly, but we still don’t have that fullness of love we had as a child.

I know that I’m not full of love because I struggle with seeing everyone as a child of God. I have had experiences that have left me bitter; things I have struggled to deal with; moments I hang onto instead of letting them go. In these times, I should remember what the Savior said as He hung on the cross, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).

Conclusion

There are many Christlike attributes that children portray. Three of those are submissiveness, humility, and being full of love. Jesus said, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Somewhere along our path of mortality, we have to relearn how to be like a little child. As always, Christ is our example. He knows we can do it. We need to have confidence that we can.