Repent? Who, Little Ol' Me?

A Master's Class in Repentance

​Some people get excited for Taylor Swift concerts; others for a medium-rare filet mignon; and others of us are thrilled just to make it to the end of our workday without falling apart.

I cannot be the only one who feels a foreigner in this life ― a pilgrim in a strange land ― trespassing through this telestial world and longing for a better.

At one low-point in my life I told a friend (who I happened to have lunch with last Saturday at Texas Roadhouse, speaking of steaks, and he reminded me of this), at one time I must have been feeling particularly maudlin and I said to him, "When the Grim Reaper comes knocking at my door, I shall throw my arms open and pull him into a warm embrace, plant a kiss his cheek, and say, 'What took you so long?'"

I doubt I'll ever climb Everest in this life or swim with the sharks in the tropics or run for the president of the United States; but if I can learn to hear the voice of my Shepherd, then I'll have had quite the adventure.

If you share similar passions, and are feeling hungry ― whether you're mile-high or having a midlife melt-down ― welcome; I am glad you're here.

Wherever we find ourselves on this journey, I love you; and I have some good news to brighten your day: yesterday my friend Clark Burt (yes, that oracle of octogenarians) began a new series on repentance; I am sure it will be epic.

Can you think of anything more timely?  If repentance saved Nineveh, why not New York?

I want to invite you to follow along with me in Clark's series:  "Repentance - Introduction."

(https://fingerofgod.blogspot.com/2023/09/repentance-introduction.html)

Clark said, "When it comes to repentance, it never hurts to nudge someone towards turning to Christ.  It is, after all, the greatest good we can do for them."

So while we're waiting for Clark's next installment, I have a few thoughts I wanted to share on the topic.

Repentance as Taught by Christ

Let's look briefly at what the Savior taught about repentance, shall we?

   Two men went up into the temple
   to pray; the one a Pharisee,
   and the other a publican.

(Luke 18:10)

​Don't miss this point: the sinful publican was welcome to the temple, too.  Instead of making the publican sit in the waiting area while his friend got sealed, Jesus grants him the same access to the temple as the obedient, non-coffee-drinking Pharisee.

Now let's see what the Pharisee says; can he pass our Temple Recommend Interview?  

   God, I thank thee,
   that I am not
   as other men are,
   extortioners, unjust,
   adulterers, or even
   as this publican.

(Luke 18:11)

Here the Pharisee passed with flying colors.  He doesn't smoke, drink, or read unapproved literature.  In fact, he goes the extra mile:

   I fast twice in the week,
   I give tithes of all that I possess.

(Luke 18:12)

"How impressive!"  No, no, that's not where the Lord goes with this parable at all.  In fact, the Lord seems singularly unimpressed with the Pharisee's "worthiness."

   And the publican,
   standing afar off,
   would not lift up
   so much as his eyes
   unto heaven,
   but smote upon his breast,
   saying, God be merciful to me
   a sinner.

(Luke 18:13)

Re-read the prayer of the publican.  Seven words.  Not a single boast.  Did the publican promise God he'd never sin again?  Did he pinky-swear to take it easy on the juice?

No, no.  But we want to put on our Bishop's hat and get this publican on the straight-and-narrow. 

"Okay Bob, let's meet weekly to see how you're progressing along the covenant path; you'll need to cut your hair and remove those earrings; stop visiting the bars, and attend all of your church meetings.  And please be mindful of what you're doing with your private parts at all times.  If you demonstrate that you can remain sober and chaste-as-a-child for a year, you'll be able to qualify to enter into the House of the Lord.  Then, and only then, will you be able to experience the grace of God that is reserved for those who receive His ordinances."

No, no, no and no.  The Lord concludes his parable without any reform on the part of the publican; there's absolutely no assurance that the publican will change his behavior going forward. Yet:

   I tell you, this man
   went down to his house
   justified rather than the other.

(Luke 18:14)

You see, Jesus is unimpressed with our Temple Worthiness charade.  We are all sinners.

   Verily I say unto you,
   That the publicans
   and the harlots
   go into the kingdom of God
   before you.

(Matthew 21:31)

It would be like the Lord saying to the members of the Church today:

   Verily I say unto you,
   That drag queens
   and democrats
   go into the kingdom of God
   before you.

(Matt. 21:31, 2023 Ed.)

When we frame the issue around being "worthy" to enter the temple, we highlight a fundamental flaw in our understanding of the gospel.

Whack-the-Mole

Turning "repentance" into a game of whack-the-mole, trying to juggle all of the commandments and not drop any, is a frustrating and futile endeavor.
 
Instead of thinking of repentance as the subtraction of vice, what if we viewed it as the addition of Christ's virtue?

What if repentance was about gaining something we don’t have?  This je ne sais quoi is NOT something the Church can give us, but only God.

In this way, repentance becomes about receiving God's gifts rather than losing our "badness."  After all, we could spend all of our time weeding our souls, but the weeds would just come back again (those 'noxious' weeds are awfully resilient).

I fear it is far too easy to become focused on forsaking our sins when we should be focused on Christ.

Our sins fall away not because we have sterilized our souls, but because, carrying Christ's grace within us, we find we have no more room (or desire) for them.  We lay them aside as a garment we have outgrown; why would we obsess over that old ratty rock concert t-shirt?

We are all going to wrestle with the flesh while here on earth (insert: anything written by the apostle Paul).

So even if we uprooted all of our sins and were sinless, we would still not be saved.  Because the condition of sinlessness is not the same as being "perfect in Christ."

​Think about that: even if we were perfect, we would still be lost without the Savior.

How Do We Repent?

Someone online wrote, "In the Church we’re told to repent, but nobody explains what that really means."
 
I disagree; I think the Church teaches that "repentance" means (at least from its perspective) to keep the commandments.

The rub, of course, is figuring out which "commandments" we're supposed to obey.  Budweiser?  No.  Eat meat sparingly?  Ummm.  Polygamy?  It's complicated.

The Church has solved the issue by telling members to follow the living prophet and our file leaders.  Or, as the jargon goes, "Keep a current temple recommend."

All this to say, we're taught repentance is behavioral: to STOP doing whatever it is we're doing that goes against current Church standards and to START doing whatever is necessary to keep us on the "covenant path."

A behavioral focus, though, tends to produce whited sepulchers and sterile hearts.  I do not think that was the Lord's intent when He called us to repent.

Another problem arises, you see, from the fact the Brethren have not spoken univocally during this dispensation; they do not share one voice.  Different administrations have taught different standards (see: Heber J. Grant and the Word of Wisdom; Wilford Woodruff and polygamy; Russell M. Nelson and using the nickname Mormon).

So there's the challenge we face: the Church does not have an objective standard of righteousness.

(Which is ironic, since you'd assume the standard would be Christ and His gospel and not whatever soup du jour is being served.)

This flawed line of reasoning can be seen in the oft-quoted illustration given by Karl Maeser:

"Elder Karl G. Maeser had occasion to lead a group of missionaries across the Alps. As they reached the summit of the trail they had followed, Elder Maeser invited the missionaries to turn and look back at the trail behind them. What they saw was a series of sticks placed alongside the trail.

"Elder Maeser then said: 'Brethren, there stands the priesthood. They are just common sticks like the rest of us - some of them are even crooked, but the position they hold makes them what they are to us. If we step aside from the path they mark, we are lost.'" (Church News, 16 May 1998, "Priesthood Restoration").

In this story we see Christ (who is the Way) being supplanted by sticks marking the path.  Got it.​

I Concur with the Concurrence of the Concurred

Church discipline provides an interesting litmus test for what the Church values.  I mean, really values.

We see the Church rolling out the red carpet of repentance to just about anyone, for just about anything, except in two cases:

   (1)  those who embezzle tithing funds at the local level; and

   (2)  those who express an opinion publicly that goes against the Brethren.

Nevermind committing adultery, child abuse, and white collar fraud: that we can work with.

Sadly, I think this demonstrates that the Church prioritizes, above all else, its money and reputation.  (There's a Russian saying that goes, "Little thieves are hanged, but great ones escape.")

Nevermind what Jesus said about the deceitfulness of riches and the cares of the world.  Instead, it's sort of like there's a new Sheriff in town:

   And whosoever speaketh
   a word against the Son of man,
   it shall be forgiven him:

   but whosoever speaketh
   against the [Brethren],
   it shall not be forgiven him.

(Matt. 12:32)

Thus we've culled the herd of vocal dissent by adopting "the doctrine of contemporary concurrence" (yes, I just made up that up, but I quite like it).

The Doctrine of Contemporary Concurrence (trademark pending) teaches that we must follow the Living Prophet ― ergo, there is no right vs. wrong per se ― only what is currently taught to be right or wrong, as Elder Haynie cleared up for us.

"Maitre d, I'll have the Chicken Noodle"

Once we realize the Church's doctrine is based upon moral subjectivity that changes over the generations, it creates a bit of an existential crisis.  How can we tell if the changes are a result of "continuing revelation" or apostasy?

If the conditions of exaltation become tethered to the living prophet, then it means our pioneer ancestors were saved on different terms than we are today.

This doctrinal relativity has painted the Church into an unfortunate corner because Joseph Smith said, "All must be saved on the same principles"  (TPJS, p. 419).

The soup du jour (yesterday was Tomato Basil but today you must eat Beef and Barley) is injurious to the Lord's doctrine of repentance and negates His gospel, making it of "none effect."

As the Lord observed among the Jews:

   Thus have ye made
   the commandment of God
   of none effect
   by your tradition.

(Matt. 15:6)

Why?  Because our consciences cannot tolerate the spiritual whiplash and arbitrariness that accompanies the Doctrine of Contemporary Concurrence, which has dethroned the word of God for the traditions of the elders of the Church.

Members are seeking a rock upon which to plant their faith, but find themselves standing upon a sandy foundation ― to wit: the Church's claims to unimpeachable authority, which aren't cogent since it has reversed itself on a number of core doctrines previously held as essential.

We're seeing the result: people are leaving the faith because of the Church's contradictions.  Some call it hypocrisy.  Others wonder why the Church digs in its heels and fails to acknowledge what is apparent to everyone: a prophet is not someone who holds an office, but someone who speaks the word of God.

Back to repentance: the way to save the Church is to repent; individually, yes, but also as a people, institutionally.

​This is why I am so excited about Clark's new series.

The Parable of the Unclean Spirit

Another parable by Christ that is in the "weird" category:

   When the unclean spirit
   is gone out of a man,
   he walketh through dry places,
   seeking rest, and findeth none.

Pretend we scrub our souls clean and get rid of all of our bad habits, so that our behavior is everything a member of the Church should be.  Sound good?  Well, get ready: 

   Then he saith,
   [the unclean spirit we've cast aside]
   I will return into my house
   [yikes! He remembers our home address]
   from whence I came out;
   [you see, it "came out" of us: we have far more intimacy with these spirits than we realize]
   and when he is come,
   he findeth it empty,
   swept, and garnished.

Oh oh.  What went wrong?  Isn't it better to be "empty" than to be filled with unclean spirits?  Umm, not exactly.

Sure, nobody wants to have a temper, or to lust, or to be prideful, or covet.  So what is Jesus saying, exactly?  Isn't it a good thing to get rid of these demons?  Didn't he Himself go around casting out devils?

   Then goeth he,
   [that obnoxious unclean spirit]
   and taketh with himself
   seven other spirits
   more wicked than himself,
   [uggg; he's got friends needing a place to couch-crash]
   and they enter in
   and dwell there.
   
What?  The evil spirit is throwing a house party?!  With seven other spirits (what is special about the number 7)?  Yes, while the Parents are away the spirits will play.

Ah, now we see the problem.  Being "empty."  Nature abhors a vacuum; we WILL be filled one way or another; the only question is whether it will be with unclean or holy spirits. 

That's the key!  The only way to permanently cast out our inner-demons is to be “possessed” by good spirits.  This is where God comes in.

When we come unto Christ, the Natural Man (the unclean spirits, the flesh) becomes replaced with Christ's holy Spirit, even the Spirit of the Exalted Man.

   Now the Lord is Spirit,
   and where the Spirit
   of the Lord is, 
   there is freedom . . .
   which comes from the Lord,
   who is the Spirit.

(2 Cor. 3:17-18, NIV)

This is a work done by, and through, Christ, as co-laborers.  We might win a battle here or there, but the war will be lost; the only lasting victory comes from the Cross, not from our current (and temporary) sin-less-ness.

   and the last state of that man
   is worse than the first.

(Matthew 12:43-45)

What is the greatest "good" spirit we can fill ourselves with?  The greatest of them all?  It is the spirit of charity.

   But charity is
   the pure love
   of Christ,
   and it endureth forever;
   and whoso is found possessed
   of it at the last day,
   it shall be well with him.
 
(Moroni 7:47)
​
You see, Zion isn’t purity-culture; it is to be pure in heart.

See the difference?​