✨ King Benjamin continues his address—Salvation comes because of the Atonement—Believe in God to be saved—Retain a remission of your sins through faithfulness—Impart of your substance to the poor—Do all things in wisdom and order. About 124 B.C.
“Why is diligence important?”
King Benjamin answers this by pairing diligence with two governing principles: order and not running faster than strength. These two words open the verse like a hinge.
📜 27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.
Cross‑reference: order
- In scripture, order signals alignment with God’s way of doing things—measured, wise, sustainable.
- King Benjamin ties diligence to order because true diligence is not frantic effort; it is structured, intentional, and paced.
- Order protects disciples from chaos, burnout, and spiritual distortion.
- Order ensures that service is consistent, not explosive; steady, not sporadic.
📗 "Order my steps in thy word" — Ps. 119:133
📕 "Let all things be done decently and in order" — 1 Cor 14:40.
📒 "there was great order in the land" — 3 Ne. 6:4
📘 "according to the vision showing the order of the Seventy" — D&C 107:93.
📚 "after the order of him who was without beginning of days or end of years" — Moses 6:67.
📚 "the Gods watched those things which they had ordered" — Abr. 4:18.
Insight:
Diligence matters because it keeps your discipleship in order—aligned with God’s rhythm rather than your own adrenaline.
Diligence thrives where order governs. Scripture shows that God’s work unfolds through patterns that are deliberate, measured, and steady. When a disciple embraces order, their efforts become sustainable rather than frantic, consistent rather than explosive. Order anchors the heart in God’s timing, God’s wisdom, and God’s pace. It protects the soul from chaos and burnout, allowing diligence to become a quiet, faithful rhythm of discipleship rather than a sprint of self‑reliance.
"Self will run riot, reliance upon me, myself, and I, is an unholy trinity of sorts..." D.B. Krysiak
Cross‑reference: faster
- “It is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength.”
- This is not permission to be lazy; it is a command to be wise.
- Running “faster” than strength leads to collapse, resentment, and spiritual blindness.
- God does not reward speed; He rewards faithful endurance.
📗 "the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong" Eccl. 9:11.
📒 "left their labors to hear the word of God... diligently unto their labors... thus they were all equal... all labor, every man according to his strength" — Alma 1:26.
📘 "Do not run faster or labor more than you have strength... but be diligent unto the end" — D&C 10:4.
Insight:
Diligence matters because it is the opposite of overexertion.
It is sustainable devotion, not sprinting.
Diligence flourishes when it rejects the illusion that God wants speed. Scripture consistently teaches that strength has limits, and wisdom honors those limits. When a disciple refuses to run faster than they are given power to sustain, their service becomes steady, joyful, and enduring. This is the kind of diligence heaven recognizes—not frantic motion, but faithful constancy that lasts.
King Benjamin places diligence between two dangers:
- Disorder (doing things without wisdom)
- Overexertion (running faster than strength)
Diligence is the balanced path—the covenant pace.
It is:
- Steady
- Faithful
- Ordered
- Sustainable
- Transformative
🗣 "We are to learn our duty from the Lord, and then we are to act in all diligence, never being lazy or slothful."
This is why diligence “wins the prize”—not because it earns salvation, but because it keeps you on the path long enough for God to shape you.
Diligence becomes holy when it walks the narrow space between chaos and exhaustion. King Benjamin’s pattern shows that discipleship thrives where effort is steady, faithful, and wisely paced. When we avoid both disorder and overexertion, our service becomes sustainable and transformative. Acting in all diligence is not about intensity but about constancy—the covenant rhythm that keeps us close enough to the Lord for Him to remake our hearts over time.
Why is diligence important?
Because:
- It keeps your efforts aligned with wisdom and order.
- It prevents you from running faster than your strength.
- It allows you to endure long enough to receive God’s promised blessings.
- It forms a discipleship that is steady, humble, and sustainable.
- It mirrors King Benjamin’s own ministry—quiet, consistent, servant‑hearted.
🗣 "It may be true that our spiritual gifts are not always flashy, but that does not mean they are less important. May I share with you some spiritual gifts that I have noticed in so many members across the world? Contemplate whether you have been blessed with one or more gifts like:
▪︎ Showing compassion.
▪︎ Noticing people who are overlooked.
▪︎ Finding reasons to be joyful.
▪︎ Being a peacemaker.
▪︎ Noticing small miracles.
▪︎ Giving sincere compliments.
▪︎ Forgiving.
▪︎ Repenting.
▪︎ Enduring.
▪︎ Explaining things simply.
▪︎ Connecting with children.
▪︎ Sustaining Church leaders.
▪︎ Helping others know that they
belong."
Diligence matters because it keeps a disciple moving at the Lord’s pace—steady, ordered, and enduring. It guards the heart from both haste and stagnation, allowing quiet gifts to flourish in the long run. When effort is aligned with wisdom rather than speed, discipleship becomes sustainable and Christlike, the kind of faithful constancy that shapes a soul over time and blesses others in ways that are often unseen but deeply needed.
Diligence is important because it is the ordered, sustainable pace of a disciple who walks with God long enough to be changed by Him.
Diligence emerges in King Benjamin’s teaching as a sacred rhythm—steady, ordered, and sustainable. It is the disciple’s refusal to live in chaos or collapse, choosing instead the wisdom of God’s pace. Order anchors the heart, guarding against frantic self‑reliance. Restraint protects the soul, honoring the limits God Himself acknowledges. And between these two boundaries, diligence becomes the quiet strength that endures.
This kind of diligence does not shout. It does not sprint. It does not burn out. It simply keeps moving—faithfully, humbly, consistently—long enough for the Lord to shape a life from the inside out. In this covenant pace, spiritual gifts flourish, burdens become bearable, and discipleship becomes a lifelong offering rather than a momentary burst.
Diligence wins the prize because it keeps us walking with God, step by ordered step, until His grace has finished its work in us.
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