Today I gave a talk on repentance in sacrament meeting. I wasn't sure how it was going to go, but I think it went ok. I had a gentleman approach me and ask for my talk, so I hope those scriptures and talks I referred to help him through the repentance process and ultimately closer to Christ. That was my one mission from Bishop- bring people to Christ. Tall order, there!
Repentance:
What is sin?
James said: “ To him that knoweth
to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” John described sin as “all
unrightousness” and “the transgression of the law.”
Because of the fall of Adam, all of
us are going to live a life where we sin. In Moses, the Lord tells us that “All
men, everywhere, must repent.” Except for Jesus Christ who was perfect, all of
us are required to ask for forgiveness through Christ’s atoning sacrifice.
President Spencer W. Kimball said:
“ There is no royal road to repentance, no privileged path to forgiveness.
Every man must follow the same course whether he be rich or poor, educated, or
untrained, tall or short, prince or pauper, king or commoner.”
What is repentance?
Repentance is the way provided for
us to become free of our sins and be forgiven. When we delay the repentance
process our spiritual growth can be slowed down or come to a complete stop.
Ever face the question “Can ye feel so now?”
and not be able to answer that with a strong affirming yes? I bet if you took a
step back and really evaluated your thoughts and actions, there is something
hindering your growth in the gospel that could be solved by asking for
forgiveness, or by forgiving someone who has wronged you.
·
Recognizing sin
In order to repent
we must first admit that we have sinned. I really like what Alma says as he
counsels his son Corianton, who was unfaithful in his missionary service and
commited serious sins. I’m going to read the scripture and then break it down
for you.
“Let your sins
trouble you- When you have a broken and contrite spirit and are truly looking
to do the Lord’s will, it will honestly bother you when your actions and His
will are not perfectly aligned.
“with that trouble
which shall bring you down to repentance- In order to get back in line with The
father’s will, you will need to have a change of heart, and want to pray for
forgiveness and the strength needed to forsake your sins.
“do not endeavor
to excuse yourself in the least point” He’s telling you to fully own up to your
sins. Don’t justify yourself. Don’t apologize and add the “but”…. I mostly
follow the Word of Wisdom, but I occasionally have a cappuccino. I only watch
movies with partial nudity, but I don’t look at pornography on the internet. I
participate in my calling, but I don’t go out of my way to go above what is
being asked of me.
·
Feeling sorrow for our sins
In addition to
recognizing our sins we need to feel bad and know that our sins were terrible.
Godly sorrow makes you want to repent. Not only is repentance necessary for
salvation but it allows the refiner’s fire to work in us. Whereas guilt just
makes you feel less than, and mope about- not really doing anything to correct
yourself.
·
Confessing our sins
The Lord has
promised, “I, the Lord, forgive sins, and am merciful unto those who confess
their sins with humble hearts.” (D&C 61:2) We must confess all our sins to
the Lord, but serious sins, such as adultery, fornication, homosexual
relations, spouse or child abuse, and the sale or use of illegal drugs, which
might affect our standing in the Church, must also be taken up with the Bishop.
What should we do
when we know of someone else’s sins?
Elder Lynn A
Mickelsen of the seventy has some great ideas:
1. Don’t judge.
Leave judgment to the Lord, the perfect judge. Let us not examine or explore
others’ sins but look to their divinity. It is not ours to delve into others’
problems but rather to perceive the breadth of their goodness.
2. We must forgive. Although we may have been
personally wounded, the Lord said, “I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will
forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men.” 11
3. Forget. A relentless memory can canker the
most resilient spirit. Leave it alone; lay it down; put it away.
If the wave of temptation to reveal others’
sins comes over you, don’t tell your neighbor or even your best friend. Go to
your bishop. Leave the burden with him. If it is required, report it to the
civil or criminal authorities and then leave it alone.
·
Forgiving others
Forgiving others
is the hardest part of repentance for me, and yet this is such an important
aspect of forgiveness. There are so many scriptures that echo the reasons as to
why we need to be forgiving of others. D&C 64:9:
“Wherefore, I say
unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother
his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him
the greater sin. “ The word condemned makes me think of a run-down building. I
think of all the maintenance needed to get this house into turn-key shape. Had
the owner of the building just fixed the small leak in the pipes, would the
basement had flood? If they had just washed the outside every once in a while
would the paint be chipping? If they had just cleaned the gutters every season
would there be so much water damage to the roof? When we procrastinate our
repentance, we are putting off the work our spirit needs to become more
Christ-like. The prophets have declared that “this life is the time for men to
prepare to meet God.” We need to be quick to repent and thorough. There is no
sin that can be hidden from the Lord, and as we repent often, the atonement is
able to work in us, and we will grow to be stronger in our faith, family and
callings.
When I was
preparing to be baptized I spent many nights on my knees praying and literally
crying asking for forgiveness. I had 25 years to resolve within just a few
short months between the time I started taking missionary discussions and the
date I had set for my baptism. Luckily I was in my 3rd trimester of
pregnancy and sleep was non existent because that became my opportunity to lay
my cards out on the table before the Lord. One of the scriptures I had come
across really struck a chord with me. I had a really strained relationship with
my sister and hadn’t seen her in over a year, I hadn’t really gotten to know
her husband yet, and that just really bothered me. I knew after reading this
scripture that I was going to need to resolve things between us before I could
worthily partake of my baptismal covenants.
The scripture was
3Nephi 12:24 and it reads: “Go thy way unto thy brother, and first be reconciled to thy
brother, and then come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I will receive
you.”
That’s a pretty
blunt “get it together” from the Lord and I knew I needed to make changes and I
needed an opportunity to mend our relationship. That’s exactly what I prayed
for, and then there was a knock on the door. My sister was there with her
husband, asking me and my family over for dinner. I couldn’t believe it and it was just one of
those miracles during my early conversion that just really let me know that if
I have the desire to repent and make restitution, the Lord is going to provide
a way for me to do so.
There’s another
scripture that is less… intimidating, but it invites you to keep the Lord
up-to-date with all your doings, and it’s something I encourage my children to
do.
“Counsel with the
Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest
down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep;
and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God,
and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.”
I look at that
scripture, which was Alma 37:37 in two different ways, one being: Literally
take the end of the day to pray to Heavenly Father and confess all your sins,
share your highlights and low lights of the day, pray for protection while you
sleep, and pray again in the morning. But I also see it in a more symbolic way:
that while you are praying, knowing that you are imperfect, pray for your
future-not-always-humble-and-quick-to-repent self, that the Lord might protect
you from temptation and when you are “asleep” to the Spirit’s prompting, that
you will once again be able to discern right from wrong. And when you come to
that point, that you can be full of gratitude to be worthy of having the Spirit
as your companion, that you might continue to have a bright spirit about you
and that your desire to sin will lessen. Sometimes I’m great at repenting in
the moment, and sometimes I need to pray to know what to repent about, to have
the Spirit bring to my remembrance my short comings.
·
Restitution
If our sinful
nature has affected someone else, we need to go and make it right with them. We
must go and restore what we have taken, or if it’s a name that we have soiled,
we need to go and undo anything we have done to tarnish their reputation. This
is called restitution and is one of the final steps of the repentance process.
Ezekiel 33:15-16
15 If the wicked
restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of
life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die.
16 None of his sins that he hath committed
shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he
shall surely live.
Once we have
completed restitution, we are promised that God will not mention our sins to us
when we are judged.
·
Move forward
Now it’s time to
move forward, to leave your sins with Christ, who has already carried that
burden for you, and go on in obedience to God’s commandments.
These last few
weeks have been kind of a whirlwind in our house. My mother had a stroke, when
we got her home from the hospital, we received word that a gal in her ward had
an aneurysm and wasn’t going to pull through. That next week a childhood friend
of mines mother passed away suddenly. What all these things made me remember is
that this life is a gift, and it is so short and fleeting. Let us be quick to
repent, thoroughly and fully. Let us not procrastinate, making repentance seem
overwhelming and the grace of God seem so far distant. He is willing to forgive
us immediately once we have confessed our sins. Let us forsake the YOLO mentality
of today. (2 Ne. 28:8.)
“And there shall
also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear
God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the
advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no
harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be
that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall
be saved in the kingdom of God.”
Elder Oaks call
these “attitudes and positions of such persons [as] exactly opposite those of
the Savior.
I know that repentance, when done
correctly and with the right heart, allows us to be immediately forgiven. I
know that forgiving others, no matter how hard it might be, is a commandment
from the Lord, and that strict obedience will allow us to stand spotless before
him on judgement day. I know that Christ was sacrificed as a gift to us, so we
would be able to repent and be perfected through his atonement. I know that Christ lives and wants nothing
more than to have you back home with him, and because you are a member of His
church, I know that is also a sincere desire in your heart as well.
