I love this quote because it basically gives us an Apostle's permission to "fake it 'till we make it." It tells us that if we're not the way we want to be, we should try to act the way we would act if we were, until we are. Basically, he's encouraging us to role-play as a better version of ourselves until we actually become that better version. After that, we'll continue to act that way naturally, because that'll be the new definition of who we are.
I'm not a paladin, nor will I ever literally be a paladin (unless God pulls a few strings to make my afterlife that much more epic), but I can and should be like a paladin, and the more I act like a paladin, the more like a paladin I'll become. I can become virtuous, noble, just, and chivalrous by practicing those traits - by acting the way I would act if I already possessed them.
While this may seem duplicitous or hypocritical, remember that we're not pretending we're more righteous than we are, we're acting the way we would act if we were more righteous. We should be honest with other people about how righteous we really are if they make a comment about how good we are, and even if we really are that good, we should be humble about it and admit and continually work on our faults. We're not supposed to make a show of being righteous - we're supposed to practice it. That's why I think this practice is especially important when we're not being observed. It seems less hypocritical when no one sees how righteous we're trying to be, and I've heard it said that "What you choose to think and do when you are alone and you believe no one is watching is a strong measure of your virtue." - Preach My Gospel, 118
None of us are perfect yet, but we all can become perfect, and the first step is to try. Let's all try to be righteous, whether others are watching us or not. Let's try to become better people. The more we try to be better than we are, the better we will actually become.
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If we can act the way we would act if we were righteous, how different is that from actually being righteous? Is it that for many of us we are trying to act righteously while still struggling with (or harboring) rebellious, selfish, or doubting thoughts?
I remember my sister telling me that she was not such a great housekeeper et al, she was just faking it and me thinking I wish I could figure out how to fake it! No one will ever be fooled into thinking I am a great housekeeper. I cannot pull it off.
Maybe righteousness is a bit different. I do sometimes "fool" people into thinking I am nicer or more unselfish than I am because I say or do a bit nicer than I all too often think and feel. Maybe if I keep faking nice, I will come closer to thinking, feeling and being nice.
That's the idea. None of us have hearts that are as righteous or as pure as they should be, but if we act as though our natures were more pure and good, the better and purer we will actually eventually become.
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