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Ponderize Mosiah 3:19 (7-13 Feb 2016)

I chose this scripture because I thought it would be a good review of what it takes to come unto Christ.  
19 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. 
As we strive to come unto christ we must put off the natural man.  But what does that mean?  How do we do it?  The key phrase is in the middle of the verse, “through the atonement of Christ the Lord”.  Certainly, we must become as a child and submit to the will of the Father.  But the atonement helps us do that.  Our part is to yield to the Holy Sprit.  When we submit our will to the will of our Heavenly Father then we are able to put off the natural man through the atonement.  Putting it in this perspective broadens our understanding of the atonement.  We tend to focus on the redemptive power of the atonement without remembering that there is an enabling power of the atonement that allows us to put off the natural man and become like our Father.  We must come to understand that the way back to our Father is through the atonement.  It makes us what we are not.  It gives us a new heart.  It gives us the vision to see who we can become.  

Quotes: 
The precise nature of the test of mortality, then, can be summarized in the following question: Will I respond to the inclinations of the natural man, or will I yield to the enticings of the Holy Spirit and put off the natural man and become a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord (see  Mosiah 3:19) That is the test. Every appetite, desire, propensity, and impulse of the natural man may be overcome by and through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We are here on the earth to develop godlike qualities and to bridle all of the passions of the flesh. (David A. Bednar, “We believe in being chaste”, April 2013 General Conference)
The submission of one's will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God's altar. The many other things we 'give' are actually the things He has already given or loaned to us.  Neal A. Maxwell. “Swallowed up in the will of the Father”, October 1995 General Conference) 

Cross References: 
Moroni 8:26 The Comforter fills us with hope and love. 
Mosiah 16:3-5  What it means to be carnal.  


1 Corinthians 2:14  The natural man does not receive the things of God.  

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