=19. Nature of Repentance.=--The term repentance is used in the
scriptures with several different meanings, but, as representing the
duty required of all who would obtain forgiveness for transgression,
it indicates a godly sorrow for sin, producing a reformation of life,
and embodies (1) a conviction of guilt; (2) a desire to escape the
hurtful effects of sin; and (3) an earnest determination to forsake
sin and to accomplish good. Repentance is a result of contrition of
soul, which springs from a deep sense of humility, and this in turn is
dependent upon the exercise of an abiding faith in God. Repentance
therefore properly ranks as the second principle of the gospel,
closely associated with and immediately following faith. As soon as
one has come to recognize the existence and authority of God, he feels
a respect for Divine laws, and a conviction of his own unworthiness.
His wish to please the Father, whom he has so long neglected, will
impel him to forsake sin; and this impulse will acquire added strength
from the sinner's natural and commendable desire to escape, if
possible, the dire results of his own waywardness. With the zeal
inspired by fresh conviction, he will crave an opportunity of showing
by good works the sincerity of his newly developed faith; and he will
regard the remission of his sins as the most desirable of blessings.
Then he will learn that this gift of mercy is granted on certain
specific conditions only.[315] The first step toward the blessed state
of forgiveness consists in the sinner confessing his sins; the second,
in his forgiving others who have sinned against him; and the third in
his showing his acceptance of Christ's atoning sacrifice by obeying
the Divine requirements.
[315] See Note 3.
=20. (1.) Confession of Sins= is essential, for without it repentance
is incomplete. The Apostle John tells us, "If we say that we have no
sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness."[316] We read also, "He that
covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them shall have mercy."[317] And unto the Saints in this
dispensation the Lord has said, "Verily I say unto you, I, the Lord,
forgive sins unto those who confess their sins before me and ask
forgiveness, who have not sinned unto death."[318] And that this act
of confession is included in repentance is shown by the Lord's words:
"By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins: Behold he will
confess them and forsake them."[319]
[316] I John i, 8-9; see also Psalms xxxii, 5; xxxviii, 18; Mosiah
xxvi, 29-30.
[317] Prov. xxviii, 13.
[318] Doc. and Cov. lxiv, 7.
[319] Doc. and Cov. lviii, 43.
=21. (2.) The Sinner Must be Willing to Forgive Others=, if he hopes
to obtain forgiveness. Surely his repentance is but superficial if his
heart be not softened to the degree of tolerance for the weaknesses of
his fellows. In teaching His hearers how to pray, the Savior
instructed them to supplicate the Father: "Forgive us our debts as we
forgive our debtors."[320] He led them not to hope for forgiveness if
in their hearts they forgave not one another: "For," said He, "if ye
forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive
you; but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your
Father forgive your trespasses."[321] And forgiveness between man and
man, to be acceptable before the Lord, must be unbounded. In answering
Peter's question, "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and
I forgive him--till seven times?" the Master said, "I say not unto
thee, until seven times; but until seventy times seven;" clearly
intending to teach that man must ever be ready to forgive. On another
occasion He taught the disciples, saying, "If thy brother trespass
against thee, rebuke him, and if he repent, forgive him. And if he
trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day
turn again to thee saying, I repent, thou shalt forgive him."[322]
[320] Matt. vi, 12; see also Luke xi, 4.
[321] Matt. vi, 14-15; III Nephi xiii, 14-15.
[322] Luke xvii, 3-4.
=22.= Illustrating further the Divine purpose to mete unto men the
measure they mete unto their fellows,[323] the Savior put forth to His
disciples a parable of a king, to whom one of his subjects owed an
enormous sum of money, ten thousand talents; but when the debtor
humbled himself and pleaded for mercy, the compassionate heart of the
king was moved and he forgave his servant the debt. But the same
servant, going out from the presence of the king, met a fellow-servant
who was indebted to him in a paltry sum; forgetting the mercy so
recently shown unto himself, he seized his fellow-servant and cast him
into prison till he would pay the debt. Then the king, hearing of
this, sent for the wicked servant, and, denouncing him for his lack of
gratitude and consideration, handed him over to the tormentors.[324]
The Lord will not listen to petitions nor accept an offering from one
who has bitterness in his heart toward others; "First be reconciled to
thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift."[325] In His revealed
word to the Saints in this day, the Lord has placed particular stress
upon this necessary condition: "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;"[326] and to remove all doubt as to the proper
subjects for human forgiveness, it is added:--"I, the Lord, will
forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all
men."
[323] Matt. vii, 2; Mark iv, 24; Luke vi, 38.
[324] Matt. xviii, 23-35. See "Jesus the Christ," pp. 392-395.
[325] Matt. v, 23-24: III Nephi xii, 23-24.
[326] Doc. and Cov. lxiv, 9-10.
=23. (3.) Confidence in Christ's Atoning Sacrifice= constitutes the
third essential condition in obtaining remission of sins. The name of
Christ is the only name under heaven whereby men may be saved;[327]
and we are taught to offer our petitions to the Father in the name of
His Son. Adam received this instruction from the mouth of an
angel,[328] and the Savior personally instructed the Nephites to the
same effect.[329] But no person can truthfully profess faith in
Christ, and refuse to obey His commandments; therefore obedience is
essential to remission of sin; and the repentant sinner will eagerly
seek to learn what is further required of him.
[327] Pearl of Great Price: Moses vi, 52.
[328] Pearl of Great Price: Moses v, 6-8.
[329] III Nephi xxvii, 5-7.
=24.= Repentance, to be worthy of its name, must comprise something
more than a mere self-acknowledgment of error; it does not consist in
lamentations and wordy confessions, but in the heart-felt recognition
of guilt, which carries with it a horror for sin, and a resolute
determination to make amends for the past and to do better in the
future. If such a conviction be genuine, it is marked by that godly
sorrow which, as Paul has said, "worketh repentance to salvation, not
to be repented of; but the sorrow of the world worketh death."[330]
Apostle Orson Pratt has wisely said:--"It would be of no use for a
sinner to confess his sins to God, unless he were determined to
forsake them; it would be of no benefit to him to feel sorry that he
had done wrong, unless he intended to do wrong no more; it would be
folly for him to confess before God that he had injured his
fellow-man, unless he were determined to do all in his power to make
restitution. Repentance, then, is not only a confession of sins, with
a sorrowful, contrite heart, but a fixed, settled purpose to refrain
from every evil way."
[330] II Cor. vii. 10.
=25. Repentance Essential to Salvation.=--This evidence of sincerity,
this beginning of a better life, is required of every candidate for
salvation. In the obtaining of Divine mercy, repentance is as
indispensable as faith, it must be as extensive as sin. Where can we
find an absolutely sinless mortal? Sagely did the Preacher of old
declare "There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good and
sinneth not."[331] Who, therefore, has no need of forgiveness? who is
exempt from the requirements of repentance? God has promised
forgiveness unto those who truly repent before Him, it is unto such
that the advantages of individual salvation, through the atonement of
Christ, are extended. Isaiah thus admonishes to repentance, with
assuring promises of forgiveness: "Seek ye the Lord while he may be
found, call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his
way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the
Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will
abundantly pardon."[332]
[331] Eccl. vii, 20; see also Rom. iii, 10; I John i, 8.
[332] Isa. iv, 6-7; see also II Nephi ix, 24; Alma v, 31-36,
49-56; ix, 12; Doc. and Cov. i, 32-33; xix, 4; xx, 29; xxix, 44;
cxxxiii, 16.
=26.= The burden of inspired teachers in every age has been the call
to repentance. To this effect was heard the voice of John crying in
the wilderness, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand."[333] And the Savior followed with "Repent ye and believe the
gospel,"[334] for "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise
perish."[335] So too proclaimed the apostles of old, that God
"commandeth all men everywhere to repent."[336] And in the present
dispensation has come the word, "We know that all men must repent, and
believe on the name of Jesus Christ ... or they cannot be saved in the
kingdom of God."[337]
[333] Matt. iii, 2.
[334] Mark i, 15.
[335] Luke xiii, 3.
[336] Acts xvii, 30.
[337] Doc. and Cov. xx, 29.
=27. Repentance, a Gift from God.=--Repentance is a means of pardon,
and is therefore one of God's great gifts to man. It is not to be had
for the careless asking; it may not be found upon the highway, it is
not of earth, but a treasure of heaven, and is given with care, yet
with boundless liberality unto those who have brought forth works that
warrant its bestowal.[338] That is to say, all who prepare themselves
for repentance will, by the humbling and softening influence of the
Holy Spirit, be led to the actual possession of this great gift. When
Peter was charged by his fellow-worshipers with a breach of law in
that he had associated with Gentiles, he told his hearers of the
Divine manifestations he had so recently received; they believed and
declared "Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto
life."[339] Paul also, in writing to the Romans, teaches that
repentance comes through the goodness of God.[340]
[338] Matt. iii, 7-8; Acts xxvi, 20.
[339] Acts xi, 18.
[340] Rom. ii, 4; see also II Tim. ii, 25.
=28. Repentance not always Possible.=--The gift of repentance is
extended to men as they humble themselves before the Lord, it is the
testimony of the Spirit in their hearts; if they hearken not unto the
monitor it will again leave them, for the Spirit of God strives not
ever with man.[341] Repentance becomes more difficult as the sin is
more wilful; it is by humility and contrition of the heart that
sinners may increase their faith in God, and so obtain from Him the
priceless gift of repentance. As the time of repentance is
procrastinated, the ability to repent grows weaker; neglect of
opportunity in holy things brings a forfeit of the chance. In giving
commandment to Joseph Smith, in the early days of the present Church,
the Lord said, "For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least
degree of allowance; nevertheless, he that repents and does the
commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven, and he that repents not,
from him shall be taken even the light which he has received, for my
Spirit shall not always strive with man saith the Lord of Hosts."[342]
[341] Gen. vi, 3; Doc. and Cov. i, 33.
[342] Doc. and Cov. i, 31-33.
=29. Repentance Here and Hereafter.=--The Nephite prophet, Alma,
described the period of earthly existence as a probationary state,
granted unto man for repentance;[343] yet we learn from the scriptures
that repentance may be obtained, under certain conditions, beyond the
vail of mortality. Between the times of His death and resurrection,
Christ "preached unto the spirits in prison, which sometime were
disobedient when once the long suffering of God waited in the days of
Noah;"[344] these the Son visited, and unto them He preached the
Gospel, "that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, who
received not the testimony of Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards
received it."[345]
[343] Alma xii, 24; xxxiv, 32; xiii, 4.
[344] I Peter iii, 19-20.
[345] Doc. and Cov. lxxvi, 73-74. See "Jesus the Christ," ch.
xxxvi.
=30.= Yet no soul is justified in postponing his efforts to repent
because of this assurance of God's long-suffering and mercy. We know
not on what terms repentance will be obtainable in the hereafter, but
it is unreasonable to suppose that the soul who has wilfully rejected
the opportunity of repentance in this life will find it easy to repent
there. To procrastinate[346] the day of repentance is to deliberately
place ourselves in the power of the adversary. As Amulek taught and
admonished the multitude of old: "For behold this life is the time for
men to prepare to meet God, ... therefore I beseech of you that ye do
not procrastinate the day of your repentance unto the end.... Ye
cannot say when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will
repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for
that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go
out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your
body in that eternal world. For behold, if ye have procrastinated the
day of your repentance, even until death, behold ye have become
subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his."[347]
[346] Alma xxxiv, 33.
[347] Alma xxxiv, 32-35.