With the commandment “be ye therefore perfect” ringing in our ears, we can still be cheerful and hopeful as we seek for eternal life.
Photo by Tom Barrett
With all our weaknesses, how can we know if we are acceptable to God? And with so many commandments to follow, where should we even start? Most of us, at some point, have felt unsure whether we will make it to the celestial kingdom.
Elder J. Devn Cornish addresses these uncertainties in his October 2016 general conference address, “Am I Good Enough? Will I Make It?” He assures us that while being “good enough” is impossible on our own, we absolutely will “make it” if we “keep repenting and do not rationalize or rebel.” In his talk, Elder Cornish goes on to teach us how we can keep from rationalizing and rebelling.
There are two extremes: we may think we have to do everything ourselves to gain salvation, or we may think we have to do nothing. Elder Cornish shows us the proper balance between these two extremes. He says, “None of us will ever be ‘good enough,’ save through the merits and mercy of Jesus Christ, but because God respects our agency, we also cannot be saved without our trying. That is how the balance between grace and works works.” We know that we must try, and we also know that God will help us, but we still may not know where to start.
Jesus once told Martha, “Thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful” (Luke 10:41–42). Like Martha, we may be caught up in and overwhelmed by the multitude of commandments, counsel, and good ideas we find ourselves surrounded by. We may wonder just what that one needful thing is. Elder Cornish helps us narrow down which commandments are most needful in determining our worthiness, explaining that the Lord’s standard for us is clearly defined in the temple recommend interview questions.
God wants us to succeed, and Jesus Christ makes success possible. If we keep repenting and keep trying, we will be good enough.
Read Elder J. Devn Cornish’s full article: “Am I Good Enough? Will I Make It?”
Source: LDS General Conference
—Christy Eck, Mormon Insights
feature image by glenn carstens-peters
Find more insights:
Watch Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin explain the commandment to “be ye therefore perfect.”
Discover what the Liahona article “Be Ye Therefore Perfect” has to say about perfection.
To learn six things that will make you more confident before God, read Alison Brimley’s Mormon Insights article “How Do I Know if I’m Good Enough?”
Read the Liahona article “Being Worthy to Enter the Temple” to learn about temple recommend interviews and what it means to be worthy.