Our religion tells us that a devil and his angels are around us constantly seeking to bring us down.
Our religion tells us that we have weaknesses that drive us to sin and separate us from God.
Our religion tells us that we must make sacrifices if we are to find our way back to Him.
But our religion also tells us that the battles with Satan and sin have already
been won by the Lord Jesus Christ, and that through faith in Him and
repentance we can share in that total victory
and be free to obtain eternal life.
Typically, when we talk about repentance, we talk about steps. The classic steps of repentance have been defined amongst us as something like this:
1. Recognition of Sin,
2. Regret for Sin,
3. Ceasing the Sin,
4. Confessing the Sin,
5. Making Restitution for the Sin, and
6. Enduring in Righteousness.
The exact description of these steps might sometimes differ slightly, but this is the basic gist of it.
I believe this list is accurate and helpful. As we remember it and put it into action in our lives in regard to the sins and weaknesses with which we struggle, we will inevitably become more competent and confident as we eliminate habits and behaviours that are both self destructive and harmful to others and which cause us sorrow.
However, I also believe there is more to repentance than simply following a pattern.
I know from experience that a person can recognize his or her sin, feel genuine sorrow over it, make a commitment to cease ever doing it, confess to proper authority for it, take steps to restore what was lost or damaged by it, and even try to live in righteousness thereafter, and yet not find complete peace or rest; he or she may continue to be wracked with guilt; he or she may remember the sin and even continue to be powerfully tempted to recommit it.
I wonder whether a person who is in such a state of mind that continues to feel guilty and/or tempted by a sin, who must live in fear of recommission despite having followed the repentance process, can be said to have truly repented. I think that perhaps such a person having such an experience is like the baker who adds eggs and milk and butter to the bowl to make a cake, but forgets to include any flour.
Jesus tells us:
...if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. |
Apostle, Elder Richard G. Scott, spoke plainly about this in the General Conference of 1995, when, after outlining five steps of repentance – sorrow for sin, abandonment of the sin, confession of the sin, restitution for the sin, and obedience to all of God’s commandments, he said,
I would add a sixth step: Recognition of the Savior. Of all the necessary steps to repentance, I testify that the most critically important is for you to have a conviction that forgiveness comes because of the Redeemer. It is essential to know that only on His terms can you be forgiven. Witness Alma’s declaration: “I was … in the most bitter pain and anguish of soul; and never, until I did cry out unto the Lord Jesus Christ for mercy, did I receive a remission of my sins. But … I did cry unto him and I did find peace to my soul.” You will be helped as you exercise faith in Jesus Christ. That means you trust Him and you trust His teachings. Satan would have you believe that serious transgression cannot be entirely overcome. The Savior gave His life so that the effects of all transgression can be put behind us, save the shedding of innocent blood and the denial of the Holy Ghost. |
It is through Him – through His example and His grace – that we can recognize our sins. As we study the life and teachings of the Saviour, as well as those of His apostles and prophets, we can acquire the insights that allow us to identify our weaknesses and shortcomings.
If we think we don’t have any – if we think we are free from the need of repentance – we can be assured we are on the wrong track and do not understand the gospel. Dig deeper. There are sins of which you are unaware that you are committing carelessly.
Perhaps, for example, you recognize that you do not do any of the things we are clearly taught in the commandments not to do. You might not lie, steal or commit adultery. You might refrain from alcohol, tobacco and other harmful substances. You might feel that you live a life that is clean and free from serious transgression. But does this mean you are not in need of repentance.
Do you backbite?
Do you criticize?
Do you judge?
Do you doubt?
Do you become easily angered?
Do you fear?
Are you impatient?
Do you avoid responsibilities or opportunities to serve others?
Are you selfish?
Are you greedy?
Do you over-eat,
or over-sleep,
or over-indulge in play when there is work to be done?
None of these might seem to be significant sins, but committing any of them can put us on the outside of God’s kingdom, no matter how faithfully we attend our Sunday meetings, pay our tithes or read our scriptures.
To recognize the full extent of our personal sins, we must do more than simply study the Gospel. We must seek to truly get to know our Saviour, and invite Him, through the Holy Ghost, to reveal to us the things we are doing that we need to stop doing.
Jesus tells us that it is through the Holy Ghost – that gift which comes to us because of His atonement – we may know the truth of all things. This is not simply the power to grant us a testimony, but also the power to give us the personal insights that will enable us to recognize our sins and our weaknesses so that we can walk the path of repentance and cleanliness.
Along with that recognition of sins that comes through the Holy Ghost by the grace and power of Jesus Christ, by that same grace can come the feeling of genuine regret or sorrow for sin comes from him.
We should feel sorrow for our sins. If we do not, something serious is missing from our hearts.
Knowing and loving Jesus Christ – and through Him, knowing and loving our Heavenly Father – deepens and enriches our sense of sorrow for the things we have done that are wrong.
Without a proper perspective that is informed by faith in Jesus Christ, it is possible for us to feel sorrow for sin which is not a righteous kind of sorrow.
The Apostle Paul makes this distinction, when he says,
I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner…For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation…but the sorrow of the world worketh death. |
If we feel bad for our sins, only because of their consequences – because they don’t make us happy – then we are missing a big part of the point.
We should feel sorrow even for those sins that seem to make us feel better. We should regret any sense we have of self-satisfaction, pride, comfort or pleasure we get from doing things that are wrong. But, of course, this is difficult, because what we are seeking to feel is contrary to our natures. We enjoy getting back at somebody who did us wrong; we feel superior when we criticize or look down on others; and there are many sins that provide physical or emotional states of pleasure. So we really need to seek the Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ if we are to feel godly sorrow for what we do wrong. And then, according to Paul and Mormon, we can truly repent.
Jesus Christ is also essential to the steps of confessing and ceasing sin. As noted earlier , Jesus tells us that he will make weak things strong unto us.
The grace of Jesus Christ is an enabling power which can provide us with the elements of
courage,
strength,
fortitude,
focus,
and other virtues we lack to succeed in these sometimes very difficult steps of the repentance process.
Learning that the grace of Jesus Christ is an enabling power does not require delving deeply into the mysteries of God. In fact, this truth is set out plainly in our Bible Dictionary, where under the heading, “Grace” it says,
It is…through the grace of the Lord that individuals, through faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance of their sins, receive strength and assistance to do good works that they otherwise would not be able to maintain if left to their own means. This grace is an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts. |
This grace is also available to us, and is necessary for, the two final steps in the repentance process.
All of the previous steps have been, in a sense, negative. They focus on the thing that is harmful and its elimination. The last two steps of repentance are, instead, positive – they deal with what we put in place of sin and to heal from it.
Restitution is the requirement to restore, to the extent possible, what was lost or damaged by sin. It is not always possible for us to restore these things. We must, again, do all that we can, of course. But there are some things we do not have power to fix on our own.
Abuse, for example, whether physical or emotional, can do damage that doesn’t even emerge clearly, but ultimately undermines all that a person is and does. Criticism and backbiting can erase a person’s confidence, trust and even harm their faith in God when they feel betrayed by those around them. These types of sin cause damage that becomes integral to the victim’s character and is very difficult to repair.
In this regard, we are sometimes a little like a pane of glass, which, once it is chipped or broken, always retains the wound. In order to be restored, the broken glass must be further broken down, reheated, reformed and remade; and you and I simply do not have the power or the right to do this for or to another human soul. But He in whose hands we are like potter’s clay can make of us what He will.
When we have harmed someone by doing those things that break their hearts, rob their virtue, undermine their hopes and cause despair, we must seek the assistance of Him who knows how to succor His people because He has taken upon Himself all our pains and all our infirmities and knows exactly how to heal us.
And, finally, repentance requires that we end up in a state of righteous behaviour, of ongoing obedience to God’s commandments and will. But isn’t this where we started out failing in the first place? Isn’t disobedience or unrighteousness the definition of sin? So if I am already weak, what hope do I have? This is where the enabling grace of Jesus Christ not only helps us to find healing for others, but also to heal ourselves.
Jesus promises to make our weakness our strength; He says that if our garments are red, He will make them white; that if we were dirty, He will make us clean; if we were worldly, He will sanctify us.
Honestly endeavouring to complete the repentance process with faith in Jesus Christ as the main ingredient that binds together all the rest of what we do, is in and of itself a strengthening experience that will make us better people than we were and less likely to fall. Add to that, the continuing grace of Jesus Christ that helps to buoy us up as we strive to change our lives to live according to righteous principles, and there is no reason for us to fail, there is no reason we cannot succeed.
The Lord gave this assurance to his disciples in the early days of this Church, as they went out on their missions, and He instructed them to lift up their voices and declare His word, and to “lift [] up holy hands upon” the people; “For I am able,” He says, “to make you holy”.
And, again, He says in Doctrine and Covenants section 88 verse 74, that we should
prepare [our\selves, and sanctify [our\selves; yea, purify [our\ hearts, and cleanse [our\ hands and [our\ feet before [Him\, that [He\ may make [us\ clean. |
And that, after all, is the goal of the repentance process. It is not simply to make us live better here on earth; it is not simply to help us get along well. It is not just about being well behaved. It is about becoming like our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. This is not an impossible goal. It is accomplished by keeping our eyes, minds and hearts focused upon Him in everything we do. If we make our faith in Him the essential ingredient of our lives, including each and every step of the repentance process, we shall be like Him and we shall be prepared to meet Him when He comes again.