Putting off the Natural Man and Becoming a Saint

Sep 2010
by Elder Jui-chang Juan

Of the Seventy

According to a revelation from the Lord, the name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (D&C 115:3-4). The name mentions the word “saints.” What is a saint?

The definition in the Guide to the Scriptures says that a saint is “a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ” (See “Saint,” Guide to the Scriptures). In other words, all who have been baptized are members of the Church, but only faithful members can be called Saints. The scriptures warn us that “many are called, but few are chosen” (D&C 121: 34, 40). Hence, becoming a faithful member is the primary duty of everyone in the Church.

King Benjamin taught his people:“For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father” (Mosiah 3:19).

This verse teaches several important truths:

When did we become natural men? “From the fall of Adam.”

How long with this condition last? “[It] will be, forever and ever.”

What is the relationship between the natural man and God? “[He] is an enemy to God.”

How do we put off the natural man? “Yield[ing] to the enticings of the Holy Spirit” and “through the atonement of Christ the Lord.”

What attributes do Saints posses? “Submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love.”

What is our relationship with Heavenly Father? He is our father; we must submit to Him.

Christ’s atonement: redeems us from the effects of Adam’s fall.

Alma taught his son that “all men that are in a state of nature. . . ; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness” (Alma 41:11).

After we are baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, we begin the journey of putting off the natural man and becoming a Saint. It is a long and arduous journey, but a worthwhile one. Also, our calling, our social status, our level of wealth or poverty has no bearing on it. As long as we are willing to “submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon [us],” we can become Saints. Take note that King Benjamin said “all things,” and not just some things or most things. What does “all things” include? It includes sickness, afflictions, trials, sacrifice, being persecuted for righteousness’ sake, making God’s will our will, and “losing” our life for Him.

The natural men are those who are still in a fallen state. Some are easy to identify, others are not. They may be “good people,” but they are still natural men because they have not yet found the path to perfection. They have not yet come to know

Christ whom God has sent. They are not willing to give up everything and follow Him. They hold a part of themselves back. Perhaps this is, as the scriptures often state, like the woe pronounced on the learned and the rich. Actually it is not wrong to be learned or rich; the root of the problem lies in not being humble and willing to confess the Lord and His ways. This is also why woe is attributed to those who are poor and not humble!

We interact with natural men on a daily basis. Be they family members, friends, coworkers, classmates, teachers, relatives, or people on the street, we see in them many tendencies of the natural man: selfish, unwilling to be restrained, self-centered, cynical, cliquish, doers of good but for the wrong reasons, easily angered, and unwilling to forgive others.

What about us? Do we still have many of the same tendencies? Have we put off the natural man and become a Saint yet? Or do we act like Saints on Sunday but live the life of a natural man the other days? Do we act more like Saints if we have a certain calling, or when we were missionaries, but not now? Do we act more like Saints at church, but more like the natural man at home? King Benjamin tells us that we need to “become” Saints. This is the result of extended effort. We must yield to the enticing of the Holy Spirit and become a Saint through the atonement of Christ. During this process, we will find we like ourselves more and more. We will often be filled with the love Christ gives to His true disciples—the pure love of Christ. We will be able to discern right from wrong, stay on the true path, and know and keep our priorities straight.

In the 36 years that I’ve been in the Church, I’ve discovered that one trait is paramount. That is “being teachable”—being able to be taught by the scriptures, by the Holy Ghost, by leaders, by family members, by children, by ordinary people, by nature, by all good things. This type of person has the traits of “meek and humble” that King Benjamin talked about.

I’ve also discovered that you can tell the difference of good trees and bad trees by the fruits they bear. Just as Paul taught, the fruits of the Spirit are “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23). May we become good trees that yield good fruit. May we become peacemakers and conflict resolvers. May we become people who are grateful, and not like the ungrateful nine lepers who were healed. May we not be like the young rich man who, when he understood that to be perfect he would have to sell all that he had and give it to the poor and follow the Savior, went away sorrowful. May we no longer worry about how many times we must forgive, or impatiently inquire as to who is our neighbor. I testify that if everyone of us “yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit” in caution, we can cast off the natural man “through the atonement of Christ” and become a Saint. I testify of the sublime feelings that come with becoming a Saint. A Saint’s life is full and replete. This is our most important and only mission in this life. The rewards of doing so are indeed worth it. ■