Cucumbers become pickles through a deliberate process of transformation. Similarly, each of us must be transformed, or born again, through Jesus Christ.
I still remember the day I learned that pickles used to be cucumbers. As a young girl, I couldn’t fathom how one food could turn into another with a vastly different taste, texture, appearance, and name!
Photo by Artem Kovalev
In the 2007 general conference address “Ye Must Be Born Again,” Elder David A. Bednar teaches that the Lord desires each of us to change in significant ways—just like cucumbers that are transformed into pickles. He says, “The Lord’s authorized servants repeatedly teach that one of the principal purposes of our mortal existence is to be spiritually changed and transformed through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.” Elder Bednar highlights a few similarities between the journey from a cucumber to a pickle and the journey from a natural man to a new creature in Christ.
Cucumbers must be thoroughly cleansed and prepared. We also must be cleansed through repentance and the covenant-making ordinances administered by the authority of the priesthood.
Cucumbers must be completely immersed in, and saturated with, salt brine. Similarly, we must completely immerse ourselves in the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to experience spiritual transformation. This process, Elder Bednar teaches, requires “fidelity to covenants, constancy of commitment, and offering our whole soul unto God.”
Cucumbers must be sealed in a sterilized container. Likewise, we must be sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise, which is the power of the Holy Ghost to ratify. Elder Bednar testifies that this “stamp of approval” from the Holy Ghost “is the result of faithfulness, integrity, and steadfastness in honoring gospel covenants.”
Through this process of repentance and sanctification, Jesus Christ can help us fulfill our ultimate purpose in mortality: to become like him.
Discover more about how to be born again through the power of the Savior by reading Elder David A. Bednar’s full talk, “Ye Must Be Born Again.”
Source: churchofjesuschrist.org
—Maddy Abadillo, Latter-day Saint Insights
FEATURE IMAGE BY DREW GARAETS
Find more insights
Watch “Jesus Teaches of Being Born Again” to learn more from the Savior’s own words about the principle of spiritual rebirth.
Take a look at “Repentance: A Joyful Choice” to learn more about the purpose of repentance from Elder Dale G. Renlund.