Repentance and the Heart

Repentance and the Heart

Feb 09 - Nov 09

By Adam Luke

Repentance connotes a fresh view about God, a change of heart. It's the best change of paradigm we can have and only comes by the Lord's blessing. To fall short of repentance brings upon us the second, or spiritual death. This paper is written with the understanding that one has the desire to repent. Without that desire, a study on repentance often yields little fruit. We must first have faith, through which we will gain a desire to align our will with God's, and "change from our carnal state." (Mosiah 27:25)

While studying this I came to the realization that the heart, it’s symbol and meaning, is intricately connected with repentance. They cannot be fully separated and this study turned into a study on repentance and how the symbol, meaning and example of the heart is involved in the repentance process. This will be an in depth study on repentance more than anything, but take notice of how the heart plays into each step in the repentance process. Through this study I came to understand more fully what the heart means when used as a symbol and example in the scripture, and what we must do to change our hearts and receive a remission of our sins.

Why the heart? Because the heart is a synonym for one’s entire makeup. We often use phrases about the heart to describe the total person. Thus, we describe people as being “big-hearted” or “goodhearted” or having a “heart of gold.” Or we speak of people with faint hearts, wise hearts, pure hearts, willing hearts, deceitful hearts, conniving hearts, courageous hearts, cold hearts, hearts of stone, or selfish hearts.

The measure of our hearts is the measure of our total performance. As used by the Lord, the “heart” of a person describes his effort to better self, or others, or the conditions he confronts.

Marvin J. Ashton, “The Measure of Our Hearts,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 15

Repentance can be summed up in our ability to change, but to do so it often helps to follow some simple steps. Outlined in “Preach My Gospel” under the section titled “repentance” in the third lesson in chapter 3 are the following 5 steps toward sincere repentance: 1. Recognize, 2. Feel Godly Sorrow, 3. Ask Forgiveness or Confess, 4. Reconcile, 5. Forsake. The basis of this study is an in depth look at each of these steps.

1. Recognize

Nothing can happen in repentance until we recognize the need to repent, until we recognize our sins. This is the first step in making anything happen in the process of change. To do this we must 1st prepare ourselves to recognize sin; we must have the correct attitude. 2nd, we must hear the word of God. There are many ways to hear the word of God, but without it, we will never know we are committing sin. Hearing the word of God in this instance is a type of assurance (Hebrews 11:1, JST) that links faith and repentance.

Preparing ourselves to recognize sin

This is done primarily through being meek and lowly of heart, and being honest or good in heart. (Moro 7:43-44, Alma 37:33-34, Moro 8:26, Matt 11:29, DC 32:1, Luke 8:15) Following these 2 steps will allow us to be sufficiently humble, and will allow us to see ourselves as we really are, an essential step for starting the repentance process.

Meek and Lowly: These two words are commonly used with each other and in conjunction with the heart. To be meek and lowly, it must be sincere, heartfelt, or “of heart” as is spoken in the scriptures, or it will not be real. The meek "shall inherit the earth" (3 Ne 12:5). Being meek and lowly is principally concerned with our submission to learning and obeying the will of the Lord. This is the true test of meekness. Moses was considered an example of meekness (Num. 12:3), and yet was bold and courageous. The Lord himself showed how noble it is to be lowly when he submitted himself to the Atonement to save all mankind (Matt. 26:36-44). Being meek and lowly is what invites the Spirit (Moro. 8:26). Finally, being meek and lowly is not a passive act. It requires us to be proactive in seeking to be meek, understanding what it is and incorporating it into our lives. It's not simply avoiding sin, it's actively doing what's right, no matter what the cost. As such actions become part of our lives regularly, we become meek and lowly in heart.

Honest and Good: These two attributes stand out because they are the requirements for receiving the word of God in our hearts, preparing our metaphorical soil to be planted with the word of God, and we must seek with an honest and good heart to bring forth fruit (Luke 8:15). What does it mean to have an honest and good heart? It means to move throughout life without deception or guile. Such qualities are essential for recognizing our sins to begin the repentance process. If we are not honest with ourselves first, we cannot see those things that need changing. Without honesty and meekness, we cannot achieve sufficient humility to begin the process of repentance.

Honesty is the quality or condition of being truthful, sincere, candid, and worthy of honor. The word honesty is related to other words with the same root such as honor and honorable. These expressions share the notion of being genuine, trustworthy, upright, respectable, and decent. As President James E. Faust, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, has taught: “We all need to know what it means to be honest. Honesty is more than not lying. It is truth telling, truth speaking, truth living, and truth loving.”

David A. Bednar, “Be Honest,” New Era, Oct 2005, 4

Hearing the word of God

It is only through hearing God’s laws, commandments, and guidance that we come to a knowledge of our incorrect ways. Man can reason and strive on his own to understand what is right and wrong and to change his ways, but the only way to truly begin repentance is to listen to the word of God. This can come from a variety of sources. It can come through a priesthood leader, teachings at church and in the home, personal scripture study, prayer, parents, friends, revelation and many more. I would like to suggest 3 specific ways in which we can come to genuinely hear the word of God. 1, Have our hearts planted with the good word. 2, Have our hearts pricked. And 3, to ponder in our hearts.

1. Have our hearts "planted with the good word" (Alma 32).

In Alma's great discourse on faith he gives the example of "the seed" and compares the word of God to a seed. (Alma 32:28) In that discourse, he says that we must be planted with the seed, or with the word of God. It is important to note that the key is sincerity. We must listen with an open heart. To receive this blessing, we must have an honest and good heart, meaning we act with no hypocrisy or guile.

Before we can be planted with the good word, we must "prepare our hearts." The Lord spoke about this in the parable of the sower. In it he gave examples of 4 different types of seedbeds that had been prepared. (Matt 13:3-8, Luke 8:15(5-15)) Seeds were scattered upon each of the following areas with the following results:

1. The wayside, fowls devoured them up

2. Stony places w/out much earth, no deepness of earth/no root

3. Among thorns, were choked

4. Good ground, took root

Specifically, to give place so that the word of God may be planted means to he humble and open to his promptings as we receive them through the scriptures, church leaders and the Spirit. We have to listen openly and heed the instruction we receive to eventually give place for the Spirit to dwell. Luke does give an explanation for the good soil, it is those who "in an honest and good heart...bring forth fruit with patience."

This parable is specifically important to our recognizing our sin to be able to repent. Look at each of the examples. When we hear the word of God, which invites us to repent, what is our reaction? In which of these 4 categories do we fall? Unless we are in the fourth, we are not recognizing our sins and the need to repent.

When we open our hearts in all sincerity, and prepare our hearts appropriately, we hear the word of God and it is planted in our hearts. Sometimes we hear the word of God and it takes a long time for it to be planted in our hearts. There are many examples of those who have heard the word of God their whole lives and couldn't recognize their sins. One example of that is Alma. He was the son of a prophet of God. He was obviously taught of Jesus Christ and his gospel (Alma 36:17). Yet after having a knowledge of the gospel he still decided to go astray and even fight against the church of God (Alma 36:6). His listening was never sincere enough to help him recognize the need to repent and change. Finally, hearing the word of God through the visitation of an angel awakened him to the need of his own repentance (Alma 36:8-21). From that experience, the word was planted in his heart, he truly heard the word of the Lord, and came to recognize his sins.

We... need to prepare our own seedbed of faith. To do this we need to plow the soil through daily humble prayer, asking for strength and forgiveness. We need to harrow the soil by overcoming our feelings of pride. We need to prepare the seedbed by keeping the commandments to the best of our ability. We need to be honest with the Lord in the payment of our tithing and our other offerings. We need to be worthy and able to call forth the great powers of the priesthood to bless ourselves, our families, and others for whom we have responsibility. There is no better place for the spiritual seeds of our faith to be nurtured than within the hallowed sanctuaries of our temples and in our homes.

James E. Faust, “Of Seeds and Soils,” Ensign, Nov 1999, 46

2. Have our hearts pricked

Nephi (1 Ne 10:17-19) and Enos (Enos 1:3-4) each in a moment of need remembered hearing the Word of God from their fathers. Each was in a situation of distress. Enos felt the need to repent of his sins, and Nephi needed to gain a testimony of his Father's words as a prophet of God. This feeling led them to seek revelation from God concerning the matter. The scriptures often refer to this feeling or experience as having their hearts "pricked." (Acts 2:37, Jarom 1:12)

The word means to cause mental, physical or emotional discomfort, it can also mean to awaken in one a sense of action (Oxford American Dictionary), which seems to be the clearer meaning if applied to these scriptures. When the Lord pricks our heart, he is simply instilling in us to do something, to act. The people of King Benjamin were so moved by the preaching of the Atonement that they "cried with one voice...have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins..." (Mosiah 4:2). This is a great example of hearts being pricked. It's important that we listen closely, or "feel" closely, for those moments in which our hearts are pricked to change, or to repent.

Another way of pricking our hearts comes from a promise we have from God that he will "tell (us) in (our) heart." (DC 8:2) This promise allows us to go to the Lord when we need to know our standing before him, or when we need to know whether or not we are recognizing sin in our lives. The following are quotations from modern Apostles on the subject.

Answers to the mind and heart are messages from the Holy Ghost to our spirits. For me, response to the mind is very specific, like dictated words, while response to the heart is generalized, like a feeling to pray more.

Richard G. Scott, “Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer,” Ensign, May 2007, 8–11

My first radio was a crystal set. It was hard to tune to the frequency of a particular radio station. I had to literally scratch the receiving wire whisker over the top of the rough crystal to find the right pinpoint, a little valley or peak on the crystal where the signal was received. Just a millimeter off on either side of that point and I would lose the signal and get scratchy static. Over time, with patience and perseverance, good eyesight, and a steady hand, I learned to find the signal point on the crystal without too much difficulty.

So it is with inspiration. We must attune ourselves to the inspiration from God and tune out the scratchy static. We have to work at being tuned in. Most of us need a long time to become tuned in. When I was a newly called General Authority, President Marion G. Romney, who was in his 70s at the time, told us, “I know when I am working under the Spirit and when I am not.” To be able to recognize when one is being guided by the Spirit is a supernal gift.

James E. Faust, “Did You Get the Right Message?,” Ensign, May 2004, 61

No matter what the situation, if we are listening closely and allow our thoughts and feelings to be open to the Lord's guidance and also his rebuke, we will be able to feel in our hearts when we need to repent. It's a process that is mastered over time, but such is the promise that if we work at it, we will become more and more in tune with the will of the Father through his Holy Spirit.

3. Ponder in our hearts - 2 Nephi 4:16, Moroni 10:3

To ponder means to weigh mentally, to think deeply about, or to deliberate. To be able to be in tune with the word of the Lord, and the state of our own lives, we need to ponder in our hearts. The Lord instructs us in scripture to ponder His word (Moroni 10:3). We have also been commanded to apply His word to us, to our lives and our situation in life (1 Nephi 19:23). Through this process, we can internalize the word of God, review our own lives, have our hearts planted with the word of God and pricked to act.

Deut 11:18 is the cross reference from Moroni 10:3, which states the need to "lay these (His) words upon your heart..." It then goes on to explain that they (his words) should be as frontlets, items that hang from the forehead so that you can always see them. It seems to imply that pondering in our hearts means to think deeply and sincerely, continually and for long periods of time about something. That is how we ponder in our hearts, it's a deeper, more sincere sacrifice of our time to the Lord and his work through mental effort. To be able to truly recognize our sins, it is not enough just to hear the word, but to show our sincerity through pondering.

The following is one of my favorite quotes from this entire study:

By pondering, we give the Spirit an opportunity to impress and direct. Pondering is a powerful link between the heart and the mind. As we read the scriptures, our hearts and minds are touched. If we use the gift to ponder, we can take these eternal truths and realize how we can incorporate them into our daily actions.

Pondering is a progressive mental pursuit. It is a great gift to those who have learned to use it. We find understanding, insight, and practical application if we will use the gift of pondering.

Marvin J. Ashton, “‘There Are Many Gifts’,” Ensign, Nov 1987, 20

Consistency

Perhaps the most important principle of recognizing sin is that recognizing our sins is something that we will do throughout our lives. Nobody repents once and is free from all sin. We all have to repent of each sin. As we recognize more sins to repent of we become more perfect, and as we become more perfect, we recognize more sins we need to repent of. It's a cycle that leads to perfection. The more we repent, the faster we improve, the faster we become like God and the happier we become. This principle is often summed up in the scriptures when they speak of the “day of our repentance”. Alma made specific mention of this phrase early on and towards the middle section of his book in the Book of Mormon.

Alma 13:27- Hearken unto my words, and cast off your sins, and do not procrastinate the day of your repentance

Alma 34:33,35- Do not procrastinate the day of your repentance

Here Alma seems to reference a particular moment in time for our repentance to take place, the DAY of repentance. But a closer look at the use of the word day in the scriptures connotes not just a time of 24 hours, but also a period of time in ones life. The "day of salvation" is a common phrase. In Helaman it talks about the women in the "the day that they shall give suck". "The day of the Lord" has been promised for sometime and appears to reference the millennium that will last a thousand years. In Alma 34 Alma actually refers to today as the "day of salvation". Day is a period of time, not just 24 hours of measured time.

Knowing this, does this mean that there is a period of time in our lives that we are to repent? Is there a specific time to repent then move on to "greater obedience" or greater things if possible? Perhaps it's talking about the time from now till we have our calling and election made sure. But it seems that even after that we are to repent.

What Alma seems to be saying in chapter 13, is to not put off the "time" of your repentance. If day is equivalent to a time period, then the time of our repentance is what matters. This makes logical sense that Alma would not be talking about a period of time that begins and ends in any conceivable time period of our own, but instead to just look at it as a time, the length of which we do not know, in which we repent. We know when it begins. It begins when we start the repentance process, but we don't know when it ends exactly. The important thing is that Alma asks us to not procrastinate the "day of our repentance", in other words, that we repent now and look at it as a time period, not a singular event.

Examples:

Peter rebuked throughout his ministry with the Savior

In scripture there seem to be few people who are recorded to be rebuked as many times as Peter was by the Savior. Yet he continued in his ministry and became one of the greatest apostles. The key to his success was his endurance in repentance. He humbled himself each time he was rebuked and seemed to work harder, to do a little better.

After failing to walk on water the Lord said to Peter "O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" (Matt 14:31) Later on in his ministry, Peter exclaimed to the Lord "though all me shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended." Jesus replied "...before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice." Peter, wanting never to doubt the Savior, replied "Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee." (Matt 26:35) Peter eventually denied the Savior three times.

Another difficult experience for Peter was when the Lord was testifying of his mission, and explaining how he would be killed in Jerusalem. Peter began to rebuke him and to say it would not happen. Jesus replied "Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence to me, for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men." (Matt 16:22-23) None of these experiences turned Peter away, he continued forward, turning towards God with each opportunity. He made the most of "the day of (his) repentance."

Joseph Smith

As a teenager of 17 Joseph Smith Jr. fell to the "foibles of human nature" and the "follies of youth" leading him into "diverse temptations" (JSH 1:28). It was interesting the effect that this had on his nature. He didn't hide from God. He didn't run from responsibility. He knew what he had done and he got on his knees and prayed. He said he prayed with "full confidence in obtaining a divine manifestation, as (he) previously had one." (JSH 1:29) This was the beginning of one who would live a life of repentance; and one who set an example of being confident in his repentance.

One of the great lessons of obedience and repentance came when Joseph lost the 116 pages of manuscript, the "Book of Lehi". He had told Martin Harris “no” various times before the Lord finally granted permission to lend the manuscript. Martin lost it and it was never recovered. The Prophet exclaimed ""Oh, my God!…All is lost! all is lost! What shall I do? I have sinned—it is I who tempted the wrath of God" (Bushman, 67; (Smith 1853, p. 121)). The Lord informed him that his mind had "become darkened" (DC 10:2). But with diligence, Joseph eventually obtained forgiveness and regained the ability to translate.

There are various other examples of repentance in Joseph Smith's life. The Lord reprimanded him on various occasions (DC 93:47, 3:9-10). Always Joseph was strong enough and humble enough to turn towards the Lord and make the necessary changes in his life.

2. Feel Godly Sorrow

Sorrow is an emotion that comes from the loss of something good. The more we value the thing lost, the greater sorrow we feel. Godly sorrow, as referred to in the process of repentance, is a heightened sorrow, a sorrow that brings about something good. Paul, in his epistle to the Corinthians, said the following about their sorrowing, "Now, 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" (2 Cor 7:9-10).

The analogy or example of the heart is of specific significance in this step of the repentance process. The heart is the center of emotion. Often the scriptures speak of the heart as being "filled" (1 Ne 1:15). If the heart is the center of emotion, it is a receptacle of good or evil emotion, influence, and spirit. If we fill it with good our heart will carry it to all parts of our body, as it does our blood, this is a principle responsibility of the heart. Likewise if we fill it with evil the wrong will pass throughout our bodies.

When a heart is full it has a greater amount of emotion or Spirit, one feels that he or she is at his or her capacity and any more would bring an overflow of emotion. The opposite is true after sin when one wishes to take away the emptiness felt inside. As we come to understand the Lord and become closer to him, our hearts become more capacious in their ability to feel emotion and we become more able to feel Godly sorrow, or joy for that matter. Our ability to open our hearts and feel a greater amount of emotion will increase our ability to feel sorrow for our sins and motivate us to finish the repentance process.

As our hearts become greater in their capacity to feel emotion, we will begin to feel greater joy for success, and sorrow for our sin. This is a good thing, although such sorrow can be painful. When one arrives at this point of feeling such emotion, the scriptures often speak of the heart as "weeping" (2 Ne 4:26). If the heart weeps, it's more than a simple sorrow for a temporal matter. Having the heart weep is a deeper emotion, it's something that is caused by a deep understanding of something wrong that we have done or something wrong that has happened. This type of emotion is the essence of godly sorrow.

One of the sweetest examples in all of scripture of a weeping heart comes from the Book of Moses chapter 7, verses 28-33. In this passage, Enos sees God weeping. He cannot comprehend how a being as holy and as great as God can weep. He says "How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity? And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning of thy creations; ...peace, justice, and truth is the habitation of thy throne; and mercy shall go before thy face and have no end; how is it that thou canst weep?" (7:29-31)

God gives his answer simply and sweetly to Enoch, "Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and ...gave I unto man his agency; And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and the hate their own blood" (7:32-33).

God has a perfect love for his children. He weeps when we disobey. How do we feel for him when we disobey? Do we remember the heartache we are causing? Are we striving to make our hearts as his is, to feel remorse when appropriate and to feel godly sorrow for those things we have done wrong? We would do well to remember God's sorrow for our sins as we strive to feel godly sorrow for our sins.

If, then, we are to feel a godly sorrow for our sins that "worketh repentance to salvation," we must learn to feel a greater sorrow for that which is lost in sin; specifically the goodness and accompaniment of the Spirit, and a close relationship we can enjoy with God. That which we lose is a form of godliness, the Spirit of God, and his guidance and direction.

Perhaps more important than what we lose is the hurt and sorrow we bring to God through our actions. Just as a parent feels disappointment and the wrong decisions made by a child that will bring upon them natural and damaging consequences, our Father feels sorrow when we do wrong and break eternal laws that have been set forth. If the premise is true "the more we value the thing lost, the greater sorrow we feel," then we must learn to cherish the feelings of our Father in Heaven. We must learn to care for him in a way that we are affected by the damage we cause through sin, we must learn to draw closer to him. This will then enable us to feel a greater sorrow for sin, even a godly sorrow.

There are various things that can bring us closer to our Father in Heaven. Although not at all comprehensive, four of the best ways to draw closer to God are 1. To be obedient, 2. To reverence Him, 3. To have meaningful, sincere prayer, and 4. To have a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

We must be obedient if we are to remain close to him and truly come to know him (1 John 2:3). But in breaking commandments, we remove ourselves further from his presence. Obedience is also a broad duty to fulfill. Rather, there are more specific things to be done to develop a more personal relationship with God, and thus learn to feel greater sorrow for our sin.

An oft-overlooked commandment from God is to "Reverence the Lord in your heart " (1 Peter 3:15; see footnote a). The word reverence means "to regard or treat with deep respect" (Oxford American Dictionary). The Gospel Topics Reference describes reverence as follows: "Reverence is profound respect and love. A reverent attitude toward God includes honoring Him, expressing gratitude to Him, and obeying His commandments."

Reverence is the soul of true religion. Its seedbed is sincerity. Its quality is determined by the esteem in which one holds the object of his reverence as evidenced by his behavior toward that object. When that object is God, the genuinely reverent person has a worshipful adoration coupled with a respectful behavior toward him and all that pertains to him. The want of such appreciation or behavior smacks of irreverence.

Marion G. Romney, “Reverence,” Ensign, Oct 1976, 2

Another powerful tool to become closer to God is our communication with him. For any relationship to develop, there must be communication to understand each other. We can learn all we want of God, but until we directly communicate with him we will be void of any true understanding or testimony of his nature. It is only through prayer followed by study and action that we come to know God's will. It is only through prayer that we can gain a testimony of his love and devotion for each of his children. And it is first through sincere prayer that we can attain the blessings that we seek in this life. Through sincere prayer our love for God can grow strong as we feel his love and see his tender mercies in our lives.

Prayer is a vessel through which we come to know our Savior, and our Father. The bible dictionary teaches the following about coming to know the Father and the Son through sincere prayer. "We pray in Christ's name when our mind is the mind of Christ, and our wishes the wishes of Christ-when his words abide in us (John 15:7). We then ask for things it is possible for God to grant. Many prayers remain unanswered because they are not in Christ's name at all; they in no way represent his mind, but spring out of the selfishness of one's heart... Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other" (BD "Prayer").

Sincere prayer is more than just kneeling and trying to work up sincerity or emotion. It's speaking to our Father in Heaven with respect and "as a man speaketh unto his friend" (Ex. 33:11). It's talking to him about our thoughts, our fears, our wants, our desires, things that have happened to us, etc. If prayer is still following the pattern of "we thank thee for this," and "we ask thee for this" over and over, it loses power and effectiveness. Talk to God! Speak to him as if He were there. He wants to hear from you and through this act a sincere relationship will be developed that will grow into a love that has not been previously felt. Through this, the ever-important step of godly sorrow will be enhanced and our repentance will become more effective, and more meaningful.

The closer we are to our Heavenly Father, the more we are able to feel this kind of sorrow. As we seek the Holy Ghost and try to live the gospel, we see more clearly the consequence of sin, which includes the absence of the Holy Ghost. One sister learned this principle as she earnestly prayed for direction in her life. “As I prayed,” she said, “I began to feel sorry for many ‘little’ sins that I had overlooked or rationalized away. I saw that these little things were keeping me from being as close to my Heavenly Father as I wanted to be.”

“‘More Sorrow for Sin’,” Liahona, Aug 1995, 25 (Italics added)

Finally, we must strive to have a broken heart, which will lead to a contrite spirit. Without a broken heart, we cannot learn to have godly sorrow. This is a requirement for coming unto God and is one of the principle purposes for feeling godly sorrow. The sacrifice that he now requires is of a broken heart and a contrite spirit. (3 Ne 9:20, 12:19, Ether 4:15, Mor 6:2, Joel 2:13)

But what is a broken heart? It's more than being broken hearted, or broken in heart as is sometimes cited in the scriptures; it means possessing a broken heart. Being broken hearted simply implies an emotional letdown, which can sometimes be severe. But godly sorrow is more than that, and having a broken heart, which leads to a contrite spirit, is much more than that.

What does it mean to have a broken heart and a contrite spirit? A broken heart comes from recognizing with deep godly sorrow that Jesus Christ, who was pure and holy and deserved no punishment for sin, took upon himself the punishment for all of our sins so that we might be spared from suffering for them. Truly recognizing the magnitude of his suffering for us individually is a humbling, heartbreaking experience; it should motivate us to change and to return his love. In addition, a broken heart includes feeling genuine sorrow for our individual sins and for the suffering they cause ourselves and others.

To have a contrite spirit means to have a penitent spirit. After recognizing our fallen state as mortals (see Mosiah 4:5), we seek the Lord in a repentant spirit and plead with him for a new heart and for forgiveness and mercy through the atoning blood of Christ.

C. Richard Chidester, “A Change of Heart: Key to Harmonious Relationships,” Tambuli, Jul 1984, 11

Godly sorrow is an important step on the pathway back to repentance. It shows our sincerity, our care for God, and our desire to be something better. It's essential to feel this low so that we can attain unto something that high. This is part of the opposition in life. We must feel, to a certain degree, a punishment, a guilt for our sins. It is alleviated through the atonement of Jesus Christ. Were it not for him, we would spend eternity in a feeling of damnation and sorrow, the kind of sorrow that never ends. Thanks to him, we can come to love him and the Father to the degree that we feel godly sorrow, a sorrow that leads to repentance and freedom from that sorrow.

Godly sorrow is a gift of the Spirit. It is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering. Our sins caused Him to bleed at every pore. This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having “a broken heart and a contrite spirit.” (See 3 Ne. 9:20; Moro. 6:2; D&C 20:37, 59:8; Ps. 34:18;Ps. 51:17; Isa. 57:15.)

Ezra Taft Benson, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Oct 1989, 2

3. Confess and Ask Forgiveness

The third step in repentance is confession of our sins, along with asking forgiveness of the Lord. This step is often passed by as a simple phrase uttered to God or to a person we have offended, but when studied more deeply, the true significance of this step can be seen.

In a brief explanation of repentance, the Lord expounds on the way to know if a person has repented, "By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins, behold he will confess them and forsake them" (DC 58:42-43). This is possibly the simplest explanation of repentance found in the scriptures. The Lord chooses to emphasize only two parts of repentance, and he chooses “to confess”, and “to forsake”. The emphasis on forsaking is obvious; if we continue to commit the same sins we are not repenting at all. But why is confession of such importance to be singled out in and of itself as such an important step? What about confession makes it so powerful as to garner such emphasis from the Lord?

There are two reasons. One, confession, in a way encompasses recognition of sin and godly sorrow. Vocally confessing our sin to God will require our recognition of the sin and will help us feel the sorrow necessary to repent. This seems to be God's way of summing up the first three parts of repentance.

The second reason for the emphasis on confession is the importance of the process itself. Simply telling God what we have done and asking his forgiveness is incomplete. There is much more to be done. Think about the importance of confessing a sin to the Bishop. Why do we do that? He does not forgive sin nor can he. But we confess to him so that he can help us through the process of repentance. He can direct us through the final two parts: to reconcile and to forsake the sin. If we allow him to help us to do that we can become successful in our repentance. Confession to the Lord is given for much the same reason. First he has the power to forgive us of our sins. It is also helpful to vocalize our sin to fully recognize and feel sorrow what we have done. And finally the Lord will guide us in fulfilling the final two steps of the repentance process to fully liberate us from sin.

Thus the process of confession includes receiving instruction from the Lord on how to proceed with our repentance. He will direct us on how to free ourselves completely from sin. Through personal revelation we will come to understand how to make reconciliation for our actions, and what we must sacrifice to forsake our sin completely. This makes confession the apex of the repentance process. It is what makes reconciliation and abandonment of sin possible.

However, this places greater importance on our approach to confession and asking forgiveness. As in each part of the repentance process, our heart must be pure, and specifically for confession, we must be "in singleness of heart" (Col 3:22).

Singleness of Heart

Singleness of heart is slightly different in it's meaning than being one in heart. Singleness of heart means that there is no other purpose in your heart, no guile. You are honest in your heart and in your mind (DC 36:7, Acts 2:46). There is much more that can come from this. The Lord speaks of being double minded as a sin. What is double minded? What is true singleness of heart? I believe a comprehensive answer would take much research and even a study of the human mind and decision-making.

But for the time being, look into what you feel in the moment of decision or temptation. It's so easy to let two sides creep into our hearts. Notice when temptation enters in and how you feel, how there are two sides pulling at you, and if you let the other remain and are not single in your purpose of heart and in such situations we often fall to temptation. No man can serve two masters (Matt 6:24). Being in singleness of heart will help us make great use of our agency and tap into the power that it holds.

In our confession, we cannot have any other purpose in our hearts except that of a full intention to abandon the sin that we have committed. Any other approach to confession will not bring the desired results. The Lord knows "the thoughts and intents of (our) hearts" (DC 6:16). He knows if there is something other than pure motive in our hearts. Thus we must prepare beforehand to see that we truly desire to be free from the given sin that we are repenting from. Then we will go, in singleness of heart, before the Lord to confess what we have done and humbly ask his forgiveness.

Finally, our confession spares us from severe punishments. From what I've seen through this study, confession is the only step specifically mentioned by the Lord that will save us from punishment. He often commands us to repent, lest we be punished by him, but the only step singled out that can spare us these punishments is confession. In DC, section 19 verse 20, the Lord says "...confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken..." Those punishments that he spoke of were to "suffer even as I; which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit-and would that I might not drink the bitter cup and shrink" (DC 19:17-18) If we do not confess, we cannot truly begin, nor ever finish the repentance process. It is impossible to proceed. We cannot truly recognize our sins and feel godly sorrow until we vocalize our sins to God. We cannot receive the instruction we need to reconcile and forsake sin if we do not honestly confess and ask forgiveness. Without completing this step, we will receive the punishments God has warned us about. With this step, we can go on to receive forgiveness and redemption from the Lord.

The people of King Benjamin display a wonderful example of confession. In Mosiah Chapter 4, King Benjamin has just finished the portion of his address that was given to him by an angel. The people then fall upon the ground, in fear of the Lord, recognizing their sins and feeling godly sorrow (Mosiah 4:1). The people then begin to ask forgiveness of the Lord. They cry "Oh have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ hat we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified" (4:2). The request for forgiveness was done in singleness of heart and with sincerity.

The part that follows is the key that completes their confession. It says "the Spirit of the Lord came upon them" and that they had "a peace of conscience" (4:3). Being in tune with the Spirit, they then received further revelation upon how to reconcile and remain free from their sins. Chapter 4 of Mosiah is based almost solely upon how to reconcile ourselves with God and our fellowmen and how to retain the remission of sins once we have received it.

4. Reconcile

To reconcile is essentially to repair the damage done to another human being or to God. It requires interpersonal skills, humility, meekness, and great emotional effort. We have to be unassuming, we have to apologetic, we have to be willing to talk out the issue and admit our faults. Through this process we can hold onto precious relationships and make life enjoyable. If we are unwilling to reconcile, we cannot come unto Christ. (3 Nephi 12:23-24)

Let's start with why we need to be reconciled with God. When we sin, we are cut off from the presence of the Lord. We are born natural men because of the fall of Adam, but we are responsible for our own sins. "No unclean thing can dwell with God." (1 Ne 10:21) Everyone has sinned, (1 John 1:8) and because of that we all are apart from the presence of God. Why is this a problem? The Lord has declared that eternal life is "the greatest of all the gifts of God" (DC 14:7), and eternal life is to know God. (DC 132:24, John 17:3) If we are separated from God by sin, we cannot know him, we cannot gain eternal life, and reach exaltation.

More immediately, sin keeps us away from the presence of the Spirit of God as well. (Mosiah 2:37) And the further we are from the presence of God or the Spirit of God, the more sadness, confusion, and despair we will ultimately feel. Thus, when we sin, a reconciliation is needed to repair the damage we have done to our relationship with God.

As mentioned previously, "Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other." (BD Prayer) In other words, prayer is the act by which we can be reconciled with God, through his Son and his Atonement. We reconcile ourselves principally through prayer, but not just the simple prayer we say to settle our conscience. We reconcile ourselves with God and his will through sincere, heartfelt, well-thought-out prayer that is pondered beforehand and approached in a reverent, prepared manner. Thus, prayer in the repentance process serves 4 indispensable purposes: 1. To improve our relationship with God, 2. To confess/ask forgiveness, 3. To receive revelation on how to continue with the repentance process, and 4. To reconcile. The revelation that comes from this will guide us to the steps we must take to finish reconciliation and forsake our sins.

But more than any single act, the Atonement of Jesus Christ is what reconciles us to God. He alone has been able to step in and suffer the punishment demanded by justice, and has then set the terms for our reconciliation. Through those terms of repentance, we can once again regain our lost relationship with our Father in Heaven. We can once again enjoy the presence of his spirit. Through this process, we can become cleansed from our sins by the blood of Christ (Moses 6:59) and thus be worthy again to dwell with God. This is the process of reconciliation through the Atonement; it's the process of repentance.

How do we know when we have reconciled ourselves with God once more? How do we know when we have taken part in the blessings of the Atonement? This comes through personal revelation and is a highly personal experience. Although the scriptures give many examples of ways we can feel or ways we can receive personal revelation, the one that seems particularly relevant here is a burning of our hearts (Luke 24:32, 3 Ne 11:3).

This reference to the burning heart is of particular significance to me, as this is how I gained my testimony and how I recognized the Spirit while first coming to understand how it works. This is a testimony imprinted upon the soul in answer to question, or affirmation of something being witnessed or heard. This is a direct communication of the Holy Spirit. The burning is a sensation produced in the center of our being, I believe to be literally in our spirits, as the spirit inside communicates with the Holy Spirit. This causes sensations beginning in the center of the body passing throughout the rest of our being. It is often referred to a burning because the intensity of the feeling is such that no other word can describe what is being felt.

It is through this spiritual confirmation that we will come to know that we are once again reconciled with God. He will fill us with his warmth, with his conviction, and will let us know that we can once again work towards being at one, or that we have arrived to be at one with him. Only through personal revelation can we gain the conviction and understanding to be reconciled once again.

The words “you shall feel that it is right” refer to a feeling of peace and warmth, a feeling that touches the soul. For an investigator of the truth, this feeling begins to come when the missionaries come and leave their message. They can feel it in the home after the missionaries leave. They can feel it in the congregations of the Saints; and they can feel it as they read and study and pray about the message. It is a feeling that is unique in its peace and joy because it emanates from Jesus Christ. It is that feeling which brings a greater knowledge and a more sure witness than even flesh and bones.

Loren C. Dunn, “Did Not Our Heart Burn Within Us?,” Ensign, May 1977, 30

Reconciliation also requires that we reconcile ourselves with our fellowmen, because often times, our sins hurt or injure others, their feelings, their spirits, and the relationships we share. Our relationships with our fellowmen are extremely important to our Heavenly Father. Christ spoke extensively on the subject in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5, 3 Ne 12). When our sins injure another, whether that be physically, spiritually, mentally, or emotionally, we have to reconcile ourselves with them. We are to do so before we can come unto Christ (3 Ne 12:23,24).

But how do we do this? How do we get past the awkwardness we feel in approaching another about something we have done to hurt them and has often caused a rift between both sides. We often feel that they are just as accountable as we are for the problem, or even for the sin. How can we humble ourselves enough to interact with our fellowmen this way each time we sin?

The first step is to humble ourselves enough to ask forgiveness of our fellowmen. Pride wants us to put the blame on others, it wants others to admit they were wrong thus justifying our actions. We have to get past this first and focus on asking forgiveness for our actions.

A great way is to humble ourselves enough to do this is to take time and ponder on the situation from their side. Walk a time in their shoes. If we take a few minutes and sit down in a quiet place and focus on their feelings and what would make them happy, we can see the fault in our actions. This will help things go much more smoothly as we seek to reconcile with our fellowmen.

Once we put aside our pride, we must follow through with the initiative to communicate with the person we've hurt by our actions. This can be done in a variety of ways but is crucial to reconciliation. This communication can be spoken, written, or can even be non-verbal, although non-verbal communication can often be confusing. This important thing is to clearly ask for forgiveness for what we have done. We need to be upfront about the matter and about our feelings. There are great books written about resolving conflict and keeping good relations with others. All these tactics can be importantly applied and learned to make this process easier and more effective, but above all it must be done with the Spirit and it must be done in sincerity, or full purpose of heart.

Full purpose is to allow for nothing else in our heart but the desire to serve the Lord. That is to lend the Lord full purpose of heart. In this instance the heart signifies Desire, and our whole desire must be to serve the Lord.

Gene R. Cook, “Spiritual Guides for Teachers of Righteousness,” Ensign, May 1982, 25

The final step to reconciling ourselves with our fellowmen is to commit to change. This is the heart of the repentance process, and the heart of the Gospel, for that matter. We must make a commitment to permanent change. In many cases when a person refuses to forgive it is because they fear the other person may commit the same act again. Not only must we communicate our commitment to permanently change, we must carry it out to its fullest measure. Through our actions we can seal our reconciliation to our fellowmen.

You see, there is a difference between stopping sinning and repentance...We must serve our fellowmen, women, and children, and if we do all else but we do not serve the poor, the needy, the downtrodden, the oppressed, the sick and afflicted, both temporally and spiritually, according to their wants, we cannot retain a remission of our sins from day to day.

Hartman Rector Jr., “Endure to the End in Charity,” Ensign, Nov 1994, 25

In reconciliation, we are able to emulate the Christ's atonement, as far as human ability allows. We are able to sacrifice ourselves, our time, talents, and whatever else the Lord has provided us to serve others, to strive to become one with them once again and repair the damage we have done. It's through this continual effort that we can come to understand the Savior that much more and come to understand what he has done for us. It's through these acts that we can worship him; through emulating his divine love and care for his children. The results of such action are the fruits often spoken of that we, as children of God, must bring forth in order to repent.

Alma 34:30 - I would that... ye would come forth and bring fruit unto repentance

Matt 3:8 - Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance

Fruit Meet for Repentance

We are to bring forth fruit meet for repentance. What is that fruit? Meet for repentance means “appropriate for”. The word repentance means “to turn towards God”. (BD Repentance) What are those fruits that are appropriate for the action of helping us turn towards God? The first fruits, according to Moroni 8:25 "is baptism and baptism cometh by faith unto the fulfilling the commandments; and the fulfilling the commandments bringeth remission of sins." To understand this, it's important to look at the characteristics of fruit. It's sweet and has a more powerful taste than most foods. It grows everywhere in GREAT varieties. It takes work to produce. It also grows in small individual units but in great quantities.

These are great comparisons to the fruit that is to be brought forth for repentance. We know it is a fruit for repentance because it takes work and it's often not convenient. These works will happen everywhere we can imagine, everywhere in our lives. They will be small acts done in great quantities. The aftertaste of these acts will be sweet and powerful beyond comparison.

The direct comparison isn’t hard to see. These are acts of service done to our fellowmen. Those are possibly the only acts that fit such description. It's interesting that God asks for fruits of repentance in such a time. When we have sinned and are repenting we often feel hesitant in our associations with others. We may feel this way because they might know or do know what we’ve done. They might have been affected by our transgression or sin. But what God asks for a true repentance is to look outside ourselves and to serve others. That shows a true repentance. That is turning towards God. That is how we bring forth a change of heart. It is only through reaching out to our fellowmen that we fully repent. Alma, Paul and other great stories of repentance exemplified this principle (Alma 36:24, 42:4)

Fruit is almost always used as a metaphor. The Lord does not ask for real fruit for an offering, but the fruits of something, the result of some work. That is a final characteristic of fruit. It is a result of something, not a process itself. In asking for fruits of repentance, God is asking for results, for visual acts of our repentance. Only then have we brought forth fruit appropriate for repentance.

Examples:

Alma the Younger seeks to bless others

Alma is explaining his repentance to his son, culminated in describing his work towards the people he once murdered spiritually. He said "Yea, and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost." (Alma 36:24) This is the fruit meet for Alma's repentance. It's in similitude of the fruit that each of us must bring forth to fully turn towards God.

The Anti Nephi Lehies show love and compassion for all

The Anti Nephi Lehies are formed by the Lamanites who have accepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their repentance is so strong and so pure that it is first signified by an outward commitment, a covenant, never to take up arms again. That commitment is then tested by an attack by the Lamanites on them in which they laid down in front of the attacking Lamanites and allowed themselves to be killed rather than to take up arms. Such was their faith and complete repentance. Other acts include:

Taking in repentant Zoramites

Allowing their sons to go off to war

Teaching their sons perfect faith

During the war chapters took in those Lamanites willing to repent

Reconciliation enhances our enjoyment in life. It strengthens the relationships that we will cherish in this life and the life to come. The serendipitous effect of repentance is that we will lead a more fulfilling life, we will be closer to those around us, and we will be more uplifting in our manner of being. Over all we will love more deeply, and care more sincerely. Life will become much more than we had felt previously.

5. Forsake

The final step in the repentance process is to forsake. Forsaking sin is a self-explanatory step in the repentance process. It can be summed up by saying, "just don't do it again." But anyone that has tried to forsake a particularly difficult sin or temptation can attest that this process can be much easier said than done. So what's the difference in being able to complete this final step? We've all had experience with trying to rid ourselves of a certain sin time and time again and seeming to fall back in the same trap over and over. Why can't we just stop, just say no, or simply stand up to the devil when we feel temptation? Is it that difficult? The obvious answer is, yes, it really is that difficult. The way is easy, (Alma 37:46) but finding ourselves along that way and staying on the way is the difficult part. Although at times we are tempted to reason out our sins or subtly throw in the towel, Christ has taught us how to forsake sin.

Doctrine and Covenants section 93 verse 36 it states that "The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth." It also says in verse 28 that "He that keepeth His commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things." We learn from this that becoming like God and receiving his glory lies in receiving truth and light until we "know all things." In other words, growing in intelligence. This comes through keeping the commandments. Simple obedience will help us grow in intelligence until we know all things. Think of God's commandments for a moment. There are many. We are commanded to study, to gain knowledge, of the gospel and "out of the best books." (DC 88:118) We are commanded to serve and love one another. (John 13:34, Matt. 5:44) We are commanded to pay tithes and offerings (Malachi 3:8-10). We are given the commandment to fast and pray (Alma 6:6) etc. We are given so many different commandments and through all of it we learn by virtue of study and experience. There is no better teacher than life experience, and to be prepared for such experiences we must study and be well learned all things.

The connection from light, truth, intelligence and obedience to forsaking sin is found in verse 37. It states "Light and truth forsake that evil one." (Italics added) Light and truth, or in other words, intelligence, forsakes the evil one, Satan, or the effects of his temptations, sin. We forsake our sins through intelligence, through light and truth.

Think for a minute of a time when a certain sin has been a struggle for you. You have tried to leave it but it keeps happening. A large part of that could just be our lack of will power, but there's a good chance that intelligence, or a higher light or truth, is ultimately what makes the difference. We have to understand why we keep falling into this temptation and why we cannot seem to resist it.

As we become aware of our duty as children of God or as children of Christ we can understand why we need to resist temptation. As we learn about the negative effects our sins will have on ourselves and others we will be more able to forsake our sins. As we learn about better ways to live to stay free of temptation we are more able to avoid temptation and sin and forsake those sins that have plagued us. As we grow in intelligence we are simply more able to forsake more sins because "Light and truth forsake that evil one."

Take for example, the teenager struggling with pornography. He or she may do so because of bad self esteem, because a relationship went south and they don't know how to handle it, or because they have a lot of idle time on their hands and simply aren't living their lives to their full potential. If it's one of these things, or any other reason for committing such a sin, it can be solved through an increase in intelligence.

For Example, the teen can learn that he or she is a son or daughter of God and gain a testimony of that, helping them to grow in self-esteem and see their self worth. They could learn how to turn to someone after a failed or difficult relationship and to rely on a parent or sibling instead of succumbing to temptation to try and void out the pain they feel. They could learn about new and exciting talents to occupy their time instead of wasting time on the internet where a temptation of pornography is readily available. Gaining intelligence of how to live our lives and how to avoid and resist temptation will fortify our ability to forsake sin and increase in intelligence "until (we) are glorified in truth and (know) all things."

Example:

The people of Limhi seek freedom from bondage

There is a wonderful parable of what we must do to conquer the bondage of sin. It's found in Mosiah 21-22. It's a true story of the escape of the people of Limhi from physical bondage; but the parallels to our lives and spiritual bondage are very powerful.

Limhi and his people, the Nephites, find themselves under the bondage of the Lamanites because of the actions of the wicked priests of King Noah who is Limhi's father and the previous king. They kidnapped a group of Lamanite daughters and the Lamanites found no one else left to blame except Limhi and his people. At this point the Lamanites had made an oath not to kill the people of Limhi, but they "would smite them on their cheeks, and... began to put heavy burdens upon their backs, and drive them as they would a dumb ass." (Mosiah 21:3) The people of Limhi were tormented physically, mentally, and emotionally. "And now the afflictions of the Nephites were great." (21:5) Beyond that, they were immersed with the hopeless feeling of finding no way out of their bondage, "...and there was no way that they could deliver themselves from out of their hands, for the Lamanites had surrounded them on every side." This bondage is a great example of the spiritual bondage we face in sin. We feel pain and misery and we often feel as if there is no way out. The guilt we feel for sin is a natural and healthy reaction we feel because we have the Light of Christ, but it also can be an excruciating anguish. President Packer said,

All of us sometime, and some of us much of the time, suffer remorse of conscience from things we did wrong or things left undone. That feeling of guilt is to the spirit what pain is to the physical body...The Prophet Joseph Smith said: “A man is his own tormentor and his own condemner. … The torment of disappointment in the mind of man [or woman] is as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and brimstone.” That lake of fire and brimstone, ever burning but never consumed, is the description in the scriptures for hell.

Boyd K. Packer, “‘The Touch of the Master’s Hand’,” Liahona, Jul 2001, 25–28

The hopelessness continued for this people. Their great desire to be free from bondage was apparent in their actions. They went to war against the Lamanites again and again. Only after being defeated and even slaughtered three times did they stop. The difference was that the people relied on the arm of the flesh. They didn't seek the Lord's help or guidance before seeking to be free from bondage, they didn't ask for his help. They relied on their own strength and found out quickly that we cannot be delivered from bondage by our own power. When a person seeks delivery from bondage, specifically spiritual bondage, the power of the Lord is the only way to become truly free. Only He possesses the power, the light and the truth that can free us from spiritual bondage.

The result of trying to free themselves, without the help of the Lord led to incredible suffering. But to the people's credit, it also led to great humility, "And they did humble themselves even in the depths of humility; and they did cry mightily to God..." (21:14) This is the turning point for the people of Limhi. They could have thrown in the towel, they could have given up, but they made the choice to be humble, to change.

Now, the blessings of this change did not come immediately. The people had sinned and done wrong for a long time and because of that "...the Lord was slow to hear their cry..." But the Lord is merciful and he "did hear their cries...and began to ease their burdens; yet the Lord did not see fit to deliver them out of bondage." (21:15) The Lord's mercy is manifest in many ways. At times it may be just to ease the pain, suffering and guilt we feel from being in the bondage of sin. Yet ultimately, he will decide when we receive forgiveness and alleviation.

As the bondage continues, it's interesting to note the way the Lord prepares for the people to be freed from sin. He sends someone, someone who helps the people attain a higher knowledge, a higher intelligence, or a greater amount of light and truth. Only through this source are they eventually able to become free from bondage.

That person is Ammon. Ammon is first captured and thought to be one of the priests of Noah, along with those in his company. They soon discover that Ammon is a Nephite from Zarahemla. They rejoice and tell their story to Ammon of everything that had happened to them. The people are grateful to have someone sent to them, "they were filled with exceedingly great joy." (21:24)

There is a great lesson in the arrival of Ammon. When we are in this state of misery, or hopelessness or tired of our spiritual bondage and do not know how to be free from sin or guilt, or any other form of bondage in this life, the Lord will eventually send someone. "I will not leave you comfortless. I will come to you." (John 14:18) This may be in the form of another person who can show us by example how to live free of our sin. It may be someone we trust and can confide in to help us overcome what we cannot overcome on our own. It may simply be the companionship of the Holy Ghost, which can be the most powerful messenger of all. In any situation though, as we put our trust in the Lord, he will send help. He will not leave us to face our trials alone. He passed through Gethsemane and hung on the cross crying "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46) Because he passed through such a horrendous experience alone, we don't have to go through our trials alone. We may feel alone at times, and we may have to go through certain parts of our trials without direct companionship or revelation. This is to help us grow. But eventually, when we cannot do it, He will send help.

Once Ammon arrives, the people get to work and start to devise a way to be free. It says "Now all the study of Ammon and his people, and king Limhi and his people was to deliver themselves out of the hands of the Lamanites from bondage." (Mosiah 21:36, italics added) "They did cause that all the people should be gathered together, that they might have the voice of the people concerning the matter." (22:1) They went to work and put out all their effort to gaining a higher intelligence as to how to free themselves from bondage. All their study was an effort to find a way to be free. We are to emulate that if we truly desire to be free from sin. If we are to forsake sin, we must seek that greater truth and light - that greater intelligence, with everything we have. As we put out an honest effort, we will come to receive that light. The Lord will teach us and make it known how we can overcome sin that at times seems insurmountable.

At this great council of the people, a man, Gideon, stepped forward and proposed a plan and vowed to deliver the people from bondage. He said "I desire that thou wouldst listen to my words at this time, and I will be thy servant and deliver this people out of bondage." (22:4) He then put forth a plan to offer wine to the guards to get them drunk, allowing the people to pass by at night. The king decided to follow the counsel of Gideon. They prepared everything they had, all their precious possessions, and all their records, along with every man, woman, and child. (22:8,12,14)

The pattern here is one of the great lessons of the Book of Mormon. There is a way to be delivered out of spiritual bondage. There is a way to defeat sin even when we cannot seem to be free. If we rely on the Lord, and seek greater light and truth, greater intelligence, we can learn how to become free of our sins. We can learn to overcome temptation that at time seems overwhelming and hopeless. But it is only through the Lord and his infinite atonement, it's only through his mercy that we are permitted to repent and forsake our sins, and be free of spiritual bondage forever.

Forsaking sin seals the repentance process. It ends our dependence on sin and on the world and allows us to focus ourselves on being interdependent with God. It’s the capstone of the repentance process. If followed time and time again with our various sins it will eventually lead us to exact obedience and perfection.

Repentance and the Heart

Repentance is a trial of the heart, in the sense that it tries our will and our natures. Through it we discover who we really are. The heart has always been a symbol for our very makeup. The effect of repentance on our heart is one of revision, modification, improvement, and refinement. The blessings derived from the experience of repentance are too numerous to name without being exhausting. The following 5, though, are of note: 1. Having a mighty change of heart, 2. The thoughts of our hearts, 3. Becoming of one heart with God and our fellowmen, 4. Having an understanding heart, and 5. Having our hearts purified.

A Mighty Change of Heart

Alma 5:7,14; Mosiah 5:2; Moses 6:65; Romans 8:11

First, it's important to understand that this change is blessing wrought upon us from God. It's not a change we make ourselves, but a mighty change that comes upon us through the Spirit of God as a result of the changes we have made in our lives. The mighty change is the blessing. It comes first through faith, and then by faith unto repentance. Once we have embraced these fundamental principles we will be able to gain a powerful testimony and a greater understanding of the Atonement. This allows us to exercise greater faith and receive the great blessings the Lord has in store for us, namely, a mighty change of heart. Elder Bednar expounds upon this change in the following quotations:

We are instructed to “come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny [ourselves] of all ungodliness” (Moroni 10:32), to become “new creature[s]” in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:17), to put off “the natural man” (Mosiah 3:19), and to experience “a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually” (Mosiah 5:2). Please note that the conversion described in these verses is mighty, not minor—a spiritual rebirth and fundamental change of what we feel and desire, what we think and do, and what we are. Indeed, the essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ entails a fundamental and permanent change in our very nature made possible through our reliance upon “the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah” (2 Nephi 2:8). As we choose to follow the Master, we choose to be changed—to be spiritually reborn.

David A. Bednar, “Ye Must Be Born Again,” Ensign, May 2007, 19–22

The gospel of Jesus Christ encompasses much more than avoiding, overcoming, and being cleansed from sin and the bad influences in our lives; it also essentially entails doing good, being good, and becoming better. Repenting of our sins and seeking forgiveness are spiritually necessary, and we must always do so. But remission of sin is not the only or even the ultimate purpose of the gospel. To have our hearts changed by the Holy Spirit such that “we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually” (Mosiah 5:2), as did King Benjamin’s people, is the covenant responsibility we have accepted. This mighty change is not simply the result of working harder or developing greater individual discipline. Rather, it is the consequence of a fundamental change in our desires, our motives, and our natures made possible through the Atonement of Christ the Lord. Our spiritual purpose is to overcome both sin and the desire to sin, both the taint and the tyranny of sin.

David A. Bednar, “Clean Hands and a Pure Heart,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 80–83

This change of heart is in some aspects the culmination of our repentance. It’s also essentially the definition of repentance. The Bible Dictionary, under repentance says “repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God.” (BD, 760)

The Oxford American Dictionary gives the following as the second definition of the word turn: "to change in nature, state, form or color; to become." Given this definition, to turn our hearts towards God involves changing the nature of our heart to become like God. If we turn our hearts toward God, our heart (nature) becomes more like him. Thus to repent is to turn our hearts towards God, and to turn our heart is to change our hearts to be more Godlike, to experience this mighty change of heart.

The thoughts of our heart

Prov 23:7; Mosiah 5:13; Matt 5:28

Righteousness begins in our thoughts. We must first master our thoughts, which will then follow to our words, and finish in our deeds. The scriptures are full of promises and commandments about the power of our thoughts. The Lord specifically identifies the "thoughts of our heart" (Prov 23:7, Mosiah 5:13) as those that will define us as a person. The pattern seems to be to give the Lord first our mind; our thoughts and desires, and once those are fully given to the Lord, we can say we have given him our true thoughts, the thoughts of our heart; then we will be blessed to have a mighty change come upon us, upon our hearts.

This is one of the most important lessons of the scriptures. The only thing we can give to God is our agency, and the heart of our agency, the core of it, lies in our mind, where our decisions are made. That is where it must start. Thus, “as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7) In the Spanish translation it's translated to mean, as a man believes so is he.

In the same manner that righteousness begins in the heart, so can sin. The Lord has said " whosover looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." (Matt 5:28) This principle applies to many other sins as well. If we covet, the sin begins in our mind and eventually or simultaneously is committed in our hearts. Sin requires a decision. The decision is made in the mind and we can choose to be guided or not by our hearts. If our hearts are to be pure, they cannot be ridden with sin. Conversely, if our minds are disciplined enough to reject sin, the thought of sin, and focus our desires toward righteousness, we will become what the Lord truly wants us to become.

One heart

Moses 7:18; Acts 4:32

Being of one heart is the highest form of unity. When a couple, group, or community achieves this, their potential is limitless, and they are able to do "whatsoever the Lord shall command them." (Abr. 3:25)

In the Old Testament, being of one heart is often referred to as a gift given to the people from God. (2 Chr. 30:12, Jer. 32:39, Ezek. 11:19) In modern scripture it is more commonly referred to as a commandment (2 Ne 1:21, DC 45:65).

We are also commanded to be one with God and his Son (John 17:21, DC 35:2, Moses 6:68). We achieve this through becoming the sons and daughters of Christ (DC 35:2) through the temple endowment ceremony. We covenant to sacrifice, to act, and to give as he did, and then we take His name upon us. (Moses 5) As we strive to follow those covenants which we have made, and strive to live worthy of the name taken upon us, we become one with God and thus become one with our brethren and sisters in the gospel. This is the central theme of the Atonement, that Christ sacrificed all so that we could be at one with God.

Revelation is the only way we can know how to follow the will of the Lord together. It requires light from above. The Holy Ghost will testify to our hearts, and the hearts of those gathered around with us, what He would have us do. And it is by keeping His commandments that we can have our hearts knit together as one.

Henry B. Eyring, “Our Hearts Knit as One,” Liahona, Nov 2008, 68–71

Be of an understanding heart

Proverbs 8:5, 1 Kings 3:9-12

To be of an understanding heart requires two steps: to open our hearts, and to apply our hearts.

Open heart

Mosiah 2:9, Isaiah 44:18-19

An open heart clears us from guilt (DC 64:22), it also refers to our willingness to take in others and assist them (DC 75:25, 58:52). Open has many meanings, including allowing access or passage, free from obstruction, and exposed or not covered. To have an open heart means to be allow the Lord's laws, principles, and commandments access to our hearts, to accept and obey them, and eventually to love them.

Applied to understanding

Mosiah 12:27, Prov 2:2

The word apply means to give one's full attention to a task. In this sense it means to turn over our whole heart to understanding. Applying our hearts in this sense then would be to give over our inner selves, or our nature, to understanding. If "the measure of our hearts is the measure of our total performance" (Marvin J. Ashton, “The Measure of Our Hearts,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 15), then at least a portion of our total performance must be focused on understanding. Why is this so important? Because too often we hear the gospel, and things we don't understand, and it goes unnoticed or the promptings to understand it go unheeded. There is the famous quote by Pres. Packer that sums up the importance of understanding "True doctrine understood changes behavior faster than a study of behavior changes behavior."

It's through opening and applying our hearts to understanding that we eventually become of an understanding heart. And such an undertaking is pleasing unto the Lord. (1 Kings 3:9-12)

Purify our heart

Matt 5:8, James 4:8, Peter 1:22, DC 88:74, Mosiah 4:2

The spanish Book of Mormon defines pure as one who is free from all sin and guilt. Both sin and guilt taint our souls and keep us from progressing. To become free of sin and guilt we must wash our garments in the blood of Christ (3 Ne 27:19), or in other words, through true repentance and continued obedience.

In this sense to purify our hearts is signifying the sanctification of our natures - to doing good and become a good person. The heart therefore is a symbol of our nature in this instance. (Elder Bednar "Clean hands and a pure heart" Ensign, Nov 2007)

Repentance and The Atonement

Finally, I would like to finish with a question that plagued me at the beginning of this study. I thought about it for a while and the answer came to me in a powerful way. It's not complex and on the surface may seem like an obvious answer, but once I really understood this, it made me appreciate the atonement so much more.

My question was ‘How is repentance a principle of the Gospel and a core doctrine if Christ himself never repented? How can Christ fully understand repentance never having to do so himself?’ The answer is simple. In a very intimate and sincere way Christ understands repentance more than any other being that ever lived. In the Atonement Christ "suffered for our sins" (Alma 7) as is commonly stated in the church. A closer look at what this means gives us an understanding for how Christ understands repentance. In the world there exist eternal laws. When these laws are broken there is an eternal punishment demanded. An eternal punishment for an eternal law is justice. In the Atonement, Christ suffered the "demands of justice" (Mosiah 15:9). In other words he suffered the eternal punishment for all our sins. Whatever torment, torture, suffering and anguish comprise eternal punishment is what he suffered. Thus "his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground." (Luke 22:44) It's beyond human comprehension. After suffering in such a manner, and satisfying the demands of justice (2 Nephi 2:5,7) he earned the right to set new demands upon us. Those demands are a contrite spirit and a broken heart. We then have the choice to obey his demands and receive his everlasting rewards, or deny them and suffer eternal torment. As we meet his demands his grace is sufficient to put off the eternal torment and save us in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Because of this He understands the process of repentance better than anyone else who ever lived. He created the process of repentance. He is the way to repentance and because of his love and endurance through times of incomprehensible aguish we can repent.

Conclusion

Why the heart? Because the heart is a synonym for one’s entire makeup. We often use phrases about the heart to describe the total person. Thus, we describe people as being “big-hearted” or “goodhearted” or having a “heart of gold.” Or we speak of people with faint hearts, wise hearts, pure hearts, willing hearts, deceitful hearts, conniving hearts, courageous hearts, cold hearts, hearts of stone, or selfish hearts.

The measure of our hearts is the measure of our total performance. As used by the Lord, the “heart” of a person describes his effort to better self, or others, or the conditions he confronts.

Marvin J. Ashton, “The Measure of Our Hearts,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 15

A study on the heart is so influential because it is the study of our very nature, our inner most desires and motives. Once these are changed, purified, and turned towards God, our thoughts, words and actions will follow suit. (DC 64:22)

The heart, as seen in this study, is the center of affection, emotion, sincerity, courage, perseverance and desire. When the heart is referenced in the scriptures, it means the point being made, or the analogy being used is one that will have an effect on our whole soul, on who we are.

Repentance, as it pertains to the heart, is ineffective if it is not done sincerely. We will remain in the same state, never becoming what the Lord has planned for us and never reaching our true potential. But as we repent with our whole hearts we will be reconciled with God. We will become one with Him again. Our lives will be on the right track toward exaltation and we will once again be able to receive the greatest blessings the Lord has in store for us. Repentance is not the goal of this life, obedience is; but being fallen we cannot attain unto obedience and perfection except it be through repentance. When done correctly, the sweet peace of the Lord will enter our lives and we will reach a joy we have not previously felt, we will feel a confidence and self-esteem not previously felt, and perhaps the greatest of all the effects of repentance, we will feel the Love of God in ways we have never before experienced. He is merciful and is ready and willing to bless, to encourage, to help, and to forgive if we but do our part. He is our Father in every sense of the word and will see that we are brought back into the fold as we take the necessary steps to be worthy of these blessings through wholehearted repentance.

Addendum

While finishing the study on the heart, I ran into many more references to the heart. I didn't want to discard them, as they didn’t fit in completely with the study. But many of them had great insight for me in regards to understanding the heart. The following are the references derived from that study. If there is one that has stuck out to me, it's the last reference here under the title "fail".

Have the law written upon your heart

Jeremiah 31:33, Romans 2:14-15, 2 Cor 3:3

Paul in Romans talks about people who aren't members but naturally do good works because they have the law written up their hearts. If we strive to internalize the teachings of the Gospel, we will have the law written upon our hearts. We will embrace it to the degree that we will want to follow it, and it will no longer become a hindrance, or an annoyance, but a crusade to fulfill the law, to do the Lord's will.

The gospel cannot be written in your heart unless your heart is open. Without a heartfelt desire, you can participate in sacrament meetings, classes, and Church activities and do the things I will tell you, but it won’t make much difference. But if your heart is open and willing, like the heart of a child, let me tell you what you can do to be converted.

As a first step, you must lay aside any feeling of pride

Further, for the gospel to be written in your heart, you need to know what it is and grow to understand it more fully. That means you will study it. When I say “study,” I mean something more than reading.

I mentioned praying as you study to understand the scriptures, but your prayers must not be limited to that.

Let me mention one other thing. In ancient times when people wanted to worship the Lord and seek His blessings, they often brought a gift. For example, when they went to the temple, they brought a sacrifice to place on the altar. After His Atonement and Resurrection, the Savior said He would no longer accept burnt offerings of animals. The gift or sacrifice He will accept now is “a broken heart and a contrite spirit.” As you seek the blessing of conversion, you can offer the Lord the gift of your broken, or repentant, heart and your contrite, or obedient, spirit. In reality, it is the gift of yourself—what you are and what you are becoming.

Is there something in you or in your life that is impure or unworthy? When you get rid of it, that is a gift to the Savior.

D. Todd Christofferson, “When Thou Art Converted,” Ensign, May 2004, 11

Turn the heart of the children to their fathers

Malachi 4:6, Luke 1:17, DC 98:16, JSH 1:39, 3 Nephi 25:6, DC 2:2, DC 27:9, DC 110:15

The verse in Malachi says he will turn the heart, not the heartS. It's singular, even though he is talking about fathers and children, plural.

Moroni in the JSH, though, quotes it as follows: "and he will plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children will turn to their fathers. If it were not so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming." (JSH 1:39)

In all other references I can find besides Malachi, and 3 Nephi 25, the word heart is plural. But because it is translated so and said by Christ himself in 3 Nephi, we must assume that it's not a mistranslation and that there is some value and meaning behind the word "heart" instead of "hearts."

In either sense the central point seems to be that the Lord, or the spirit of Elijah will turn the heart of the children to the fathers. Given that this has a lot to do with genealogy work, turning the heart could mean turning the attention, care, or love towards ancestors. Turning the heart is also a central theme in repentance and is given in this case as a forewarning to avoid severe punishment. The heart, in a singular sense, is speaking of the children as a whole. This will be a church-wide, or a world-wide effort as we have seen since Elijah returned. It's not just individual. The world is turning their collective heart.

So what must we do? We must follow the living prophet, for herein is our only safety. He says, among other things:

1. Complete four-generation family records and as far beyond as you can go.

2. Write a personal and family history.

3. Perform a reasonable number of temple ordinances by attending the temple as often as is practical.

Hartman Rector Jr., “Turning the Hearts,” Ensign, May 1981, 73

Since finishing this study I’ve also come to understand that when Elijah talks about turning the heart of the children to the fathers it’s a reference to the Abrahamic Covenant and what the great patriarchs did. I haven’t studied this out but I think it’s a great insight to Elijah’s words.

Christ's name written upon our hearts

Mosiah 5:12

In Mosiah 5 it says we are to retain the name written upon our hearts, implying that the name can be erased once it is written upon our hearts. Our efforts then, should be focused on the retention of such blessings.

We have accepted the Atonement through baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost, thereby taking upon us the name of Christ.

We must not take that name in vain. Let us give our hearts to furthering our Savior’s purposes here on earth, serving others, denying ourselves of all ungodliness, and thereby retaining His name written always in our hearts.

Ester Rasband, “The Third Commandment,” Ensign, Apr 1999, 13

Pour out our hearts

Mosiah 24:12, Alma 34:27, Lam 2:19

Almost all references to pouring out the heart relates to prayer; earnest, sincere prayer done with great effort. I believe the heart is a symbol of our emotion in this instance, a symbol of sincerity. This can go hand in hand with having full purpose of heart.

Prepare your heart

1 Sam 7:3, Ezra 7:10, DC 58:6, 132:3

The word prepare comes from the Latin praeparare from prae "before", and parare "make ready." (Oxford American Dictionary) We must make our hearts ready beforehand to complete certain things the Lord has in store for us. If we are not prepared, we will not be able to fulfill what is asked of us. The following are the 4 things mentioned in scripture that we are to prepare for.

-Seek the Law of the Lord and to do it (Ezra 7:10)

-To be delivered (1 Sam 7:3)

-To bear testimony (DC 58:6)

-To receive and obey instruction (DC 132:3)

There are many other, more specific things that we are to make ready our hearts for. Namely temple worship, family duties, future callings, etc. The only way to prepare our hearts for these is to see that we are doing the basics to remain close to the Spirit.

Just as an athlete readies his or her heart and body by daily physical exercise, we too can prepare our hearts spiritually for those things to come. Daily running and weight training are akin to daily prayer and scripture study. If we are adequately prepared through diligent study and a close relationship with the Lord, we will be prepared for the Lord to "try our heart" (Proverbs 17:3) in any way.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart

Proverbs 3:5

Trust means "a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something" (Oxford American Dictionary). Because we are to do so with all our hearts it leaves no room for doubt. In this sense the heart is a symbol of the complete nature of our trust.

Bind them (your parents' laws and commandments) continually upon thine heart

Proverbs 6:21

2 definitions of the word bind are: 1) cause (people) to feel that they belong together or form a cohesive group, and 2) cause someone to feel strongly attached to.

If we are to bind our hearts to the laws and commandments of our parents, both earthly and heavenly, we need to feel that we belong or are attached to those laws. In other words, we much gain a testimony of such laws and love to obey them.

Sing

Eph 5:19, DC 25:12

To sing in your heart, or to have a song of the heart slightly escapes me, to be honest. I know it means to be sincere in your praise through song, which I have felt. When I sing in my heart, or when I really don't sing with my heart in it there is an obvious difference. It denotes sincerity in praise, and sincerity in what we are singing. But beyond this I believe there is something more, maybe something more meaningful.

Treasure up in your heart

DC 11:26, 6:20, 43:34

The word treasure as a verb means "to keep carefully" (Oxford American Dictionary). What are we to treasure in our hearts? First, the revelation which we receive from God (DC 11:26), and the words of God, both written and spoken (DC 6:20, 43:34). If we do so, we have the promise that we will "not be deceived" (JS-M 1:37).

I believe this to be a key to remembering Christ always and thus having the companionship of the Spirit to be with us always. If we show adequate reverence to His word, we will show adequate reverence to him in our actions and fulfill our part of the sacramental covenant.

Puffed up in your heart, Lifted up in the pride of your heart

Jacob 2, 2 Nephi 28

The analogy of being puffed up in heart, or being puffed up at all is an interesting one. Why does the Lord choose to use this analogy? At first take there is nothing wrong with being puffed up. The definition means "to cause to swell" (Oxford American Dictionary). In society we talk a lot about how great it is to have a "big heart." The analogy of having a puffed up heart goes far beyond a swollen heart.

The imagery that the Lord is trying to create is one that goes along with other such words, "vaunting, exalting, lifted up." All connote a feeling of comparison to others, a sense that if you're higher, they must be lower. The Gospel of Jesus Christ doesn't work like that. It seeks to lift others a long with yourself. If your heart is puffed up, you are the one raising yourself, not raising others. The heart must be strong, big, pure, and kind along with many other things cited in this study, but all these are to be used for the assistance of others or for our salvation. Having a heart that is puffed up does no such thing.

The most interesting part of this analogy is that in the English language, puffed implies being filled with air, in other words, nothing. When the heart is puffed up it is a false sense of having a big heart, of being above or better than another. God will see that we are not always puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and when that happens, we will finally see that what we thought was great or lifting us up had no substance to it at all.

Finally, charity, the pure love of Christ "is not puffed up" (Moroni 7:45).

I like Mormon and Paul’s language that says one who truly loves is not “puffed up.” Puffed up! Isn’t that a great image? True love blooms when we care more about another person than we care about ourselves. That is Christ’s great atoning example for us, and it ought to be more evident in the kindness we show, the respect we give, and the selflessness and courtesy we employ in our personal relationships.

Jeffrey R. Holland, “How Do I Love Thee?,” New Era, Oct 2003, 4

The Lord trieth the heart

Prov 17:3

The heart in this sense is symbolic of our will power. The Lord will try just about every aspect of our lives. He will try the righteous (Prov 11:5), he will try our patience and our faith (Mosiah 23), and he will try our hearts. The scriptures are full of examples, from Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac (Gen. 22), to Adam and Eve dealing with the loss of both their children, one physically, one spiritually (Moses 5), to Alma and his people in the wilderness (Mosiah 23-24), and finally, the greatest example of all, Christ himself, suffered through the atonement and did so alone, at least the very end of it (Matt. 27:46), testing the very limits of his will. This is a central theme of the scriptures, and no one can be exempt from such trials. It's one of the central purposes of this life.

Turn away

DC 45:29, Abr 1:17

Turning the heart away from the Lord is a way of worshipping someone besides the Lord. If we look at the heart again as a center for emotion, sincerity, and even affection, then our most sincere cares are placed on someone or something else. This form of turning away is particularly damaging because it's the heart that is turned away, so the rebellion is not visible to anyone except the Lord and the person who is turning away. These people often continue to profess a belief, often a strong belief in Christ, but do not follow through with their actions (Matt 15:8-9). Turning away the heart is a form of dishonesty to the Lord, our fellowmen, and ourselves.

This is often caused by following the "precepts of men" (DC 45:29). A precept is "a general rule intended to regulate behavior or thought" (Oxford American Dictionary). If we follow the general rules or accept the societal norms that are against the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are turning our hearts from the Lord; we won't be able to discern His light, and in turn we will become lost in the mists of darkness (1 Ne 8). This is one of the more subtle and powerful ways that Satan uses to ensnare us.

Soft or hard hearted

2 Nephi 33, Alma 24:8(7-19), DC 121:4, Eph 4:18, DC 58:15, 1 Nephi 2:16; Marvin J. Ashton, “The Measure of Our Hearts,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 15

A hard heart is a phrase often used to describe the wicked that want to be wicked, often those who have known the truth and choose to reject it (2 Ne 33:2, Jacob 4:14). But the description seems to be more than an analogy. When one is angry and decides not to accept truth, the heart literally feels hardened. The muscles tighten and emotion is kept away, and eventually the person becomes past feeling (1 Ne 17:45). On the other side, a soft heart is what one feels when we forgive. It is what we feel when we do something nice. The good feeling is relaxing and the area of the heart literally feels gentle, sensitive, and soothing on the inside. These are the feelings of the Spirit. Thus why it is something so condemned to be hard hearted, because you won't allow the Spirit to come into your heart and change you.

Evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies proceed forth from the heart

Matt 15:19

Can we infer from Matthew 15:19 and others (Heb. 3:12, Hel. 12:4, Mosiah 3:19) that the heart is inherently evil and if we do not interfere and make righteous decisions and judgments, we will lose our hearts to sin and evil desires? The natural man is an enemy to God and at the very center, the core of that man, is the heart. This can explain why sin is so addicting, why it's so tempting, because the desires of our hearts are intrinsically evil. We want to do bad by nature, and it is only when we adhere to the whisperings of the Spirit or the light of Christ that we can choose to make good decisions, and eventually change our hearts, a commandment that is given often in the Book of Mormon. Man has need to change his heart, or his nature, because of the fall of Adam. He can do so because of the Atonement of Christ.

Keep thy heart

Prov 4:23

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. The writer of Proverbs encourages us to keep our hearts. Keep can mean anything from "retain", to "cause to continue", to "provide sustenance for" (Oxford American Dictionary). The scriptures usually use the heart symbolically, although the charge to take care of our hearts physically is just as important. Taking this symbolically, we are to provide sustenance for our heart in way that we cause it to continue. Spiritually, we feel our heart as we gain greater conviction of the Gospel, and when we gain greater charity and care for our fellowmen. We provide sustenance for our heart as we assist it to grow stronger and more tender.

The second part of the scripture gives us the reason. It says out of it are to issues of life. In Spanish the translation implies it to say, "out of it flows life." Again, taken physically, blood flows from the heart giving us sustaining support. Spiritually, out of our heart flow will, desire, and emotion. These are the issues of life. If we keep our heart strong spiritually, our will and desire will be given over to the Lord. Our emotion, or our love and care for others will grow stronger and we will be more capable of helping others, and will be more desirous to do so. Keeping our heart will allow us be more God-like, to develop the quality of godliness (DC 4).

Fail

DC 88:91, 45:26, Luke 21:26

This is a specific reference to men in most cases. Although in the scriptures where it refers to man it is common practice to substitute woman in as well, this scripture has largely gone without such a substitution. There are many facts about heart failure among men cited along with these scriptures as well as other interpretations. For purposes of this explanation a different paradigm will be applied.

The heart is often a symbol of will power (Alma 62:1, Alma 17:12, Hel 5:24). It is a measurement of determination, desire, and strength to overpower adversity. It's interesting to note that men's hearts will fail them. The man is looked upon as a provider, a protector, and often a fearless leader. He is the one who is supposed to lead out in difficult situations; he is the one is to stand up for what is good and true in the world. Is this prophecy not coming true in the sense that men are rolling over on their responsibility to be men in the purest sense? In the latter days it is assumed and almost socially acceptable in most parts of the world for a man to be at least unfaithful in his thoughts. It's also expected that he will be unfaithful to his wife in his attitude towards pornography. This is part of being a "man". You're also only a man if you provide the absolute best for your family temporally, even if this means going into debt, and often severe debt. Now being a man has nothing to do with honoring and upholding womanhood, having integrity in your dealings with our fellowmen, and sacrificing for your family. It's looking out for "#1", and not about lifting others around you.

The world is still a good place, and there are still many great men in the world. It's cynical to get caught up in the notion that the world over is going to burn because there are practically no good men left who adhere to excellent values. But, it's mainstream society that wants to push this image of the natural man. One who gives in to all his personal, selfish, or carnal desires. In most of the references to men's hearts failing in the latter days, a reference to fear is made as the cause of this heart failure. Although this is subconscious to most men, it is the fear of other men, fear of society, as the principle reason to why they cannot "rise up and be men" (2 ne 1:21). Their heart, their courage to do what is right, has failed them time and time again as they continue to shrink from their responsibility and what they truly could become. In this sense, men's hearts have and will continue to fail them.