Daily Repentance?

[ZealouslyStriving]

"Discover the joy of daily repentance" coined by Pres. Nelson is a phrase that has been popular as of late.

But while studying today on repentance in the TOPC manuals, I came across this quote by The Prophet Joseph Smith Jr.:

"Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God."

It seems Brother Joseph wasn't fond of that kind of sentiment and felt we should be progressing to such a point that we shouldn't need to repent daily.

Thoughts?

Edited June 23, 2025 by ZealouslyStriving

[blackstrap]

Can one repent daily of the same sin? If repentance has those 5 steps like we were taught in my youth, then I think not. 

[InCognitus]

1 hour ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

"Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with* every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God."

* Cambridge Dictionary:   "trifle with someone/something:   to treat someone or something carelessly or without respect:  trifle with someone's affections He trifled with her affections (= feelings).  As you know, Caroline O'Neill is not a woman to be trifled with.

It seems to me that Joseph Smith (in context) is referring to an attitude of disrespect toward the process of repentance, wherein a person has a casual mindset toward the sin and continues in it with the idea that he or she can simply repent of it every day after they are done enjoying the sin for that day.

[MustardSeed]

I have to repent repeatedly - and often repeatedly for the same things over and again. 
I guess I could stop repenting if that’s a problem 🙃

[ZealouslyStriving]

2 minutes ago, InCognitus said:

* Cambridge Dictionary:   "trifle with someone/something:   to treat someone or something carelessly or without respect:  trifle with someone's affections He trifled with her affections (= feelings).  As you know, Caroline O'Neill is not a woman to be trifled with.

It seems to me that Joseph Smith (in context) is referring to an attitude of disrespect toward the process of repentance, wherein a person has a casual mindset toward the sin and continues in it with the idea that he or she can simply repent of it every day after they are done enjoying the sin for that day.

Isn't that the danger right now, if there isn't a follow-up emphasis on holiness?

I can see the Saints falling into that trap if they aren't careful.

[InCognitus]

17 minutes ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

Isn't that the danger right now, if there isn't a follow-up emphasis on holiness?

I can see the Saints falling into that trap if they aren't careful.

That is always a danger, but you were contrasting what Joseph Smith was saying with what President Nelson was saying.

The context of Joseph Smith's remarks was about disrespecting the process of repentance (with no intent to improve), whereas President Nelson's remarks were in the context of his talk on The Power of Spiritual Momentum, saying that "Repenting is the key to progress. Pure faith keeps us moving forward on the covenant path", and "Walking the covenant path, coupled with daily repentance, fuels positive spiritual momentum".

President Nelson was talking about daily repentance as a process to move past ones sins (with "spiritual momentum"), whereas Joseph Smith's remarks were directed at treating repentance casually with no intent at improvement.

[Tony uk]

In repentance, not only is it a matter of regret, and speaking God's forgiveness. In daily repentance, can understand where they have gone wrong, and make every effort not to make the same mistakes again. Avoiding certain situations, how better to handle certain situations that can not be avoided. 

[bluebell]

15 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

"Discover the joy of daily repentance" coined by Pres. Nelson is a phrase that has been popular as of late.

But while studying today on repentance in the TOPC manuals, I came across this quote by The Prophet Joseph Smith Jr.:

"Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God."

It seems Brother Joseph wasn't fond of that kind of sentiment and felt we should be progressing to such a point that we shouldn't need to repent daily.

Thoughts?

It seems like the two men are coming at the subject of repentance from different angles, both being valid.

To repent literally means to change.  Ideally we are changing a little each day to be more like our Savior and less like the natural man.  Will there ever come a day in mortality where you and I won't need to change some part of us to be perfect like Him?  I don't personally believe so.

But to be using repentance as a way to continue to sin each day and then have a clean slate would be to make a mockery of God's mercy, in my opinion.  We shouldn't use repentance as a way to keep the natural man and try to access God's grace at the same time.  That's not actually repentance because it involves no desire to actually change.  It's more like trying to use repentance as a loop hole I think.

[halconero]

16 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

"Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God."

This came up in Elders Quorum a month or so ago. One brother pointed out that "daily transgression and daily repentance" function as a noun phrase: a group of words that functions grammatically as a single noun or subject. Put another way, daily transgression and daily repentance are joined together as a single idea.

This is an oversimplification, and risks turning our relationship to God into an accounting exercise, but for illustrative purposes let's say that transgression puts us in a spiritual deficit of -1. Repentance nets out this deficit with a +1 and returns us to a sum status of 0. If we do this day after day, we persist in a state of spiritual stagnation. Not only that, but Joseph Smith states that we're actually displeasing God through such a pattern of living, suggesting that we're actually worsening our position in relation to Him.

Now, let's compare that with President Nelson's remarks in which he used the phrase "daily repentance." Emphasis mine:

Quote

Walking the covenant path, coupled with daily repentance, fuels positive spiritual momentum.

Also:

Quote

My dear brothers and sisters, with all the pleadings of my heart, I urge you to get on the covenant path and stay there. Experience the joy of repenting daily. Learn about God and how He works. Seek and expect miracles. Strive to end conflict in your life.

I bolded the above because, in both cases where "daily repentance" is mentioned, they proceed the subject of getting on, walking, or staying on the "covenant path." President Nelson discusses this concept in greater detail throughout his talk, and outlines a pattern of spiritual momentum focused on learning of and becoming as the Saviour.

Put it all together, I don't think Presidents Nelson and Smith are discussing the same patterns of behaviour. The latter focuses on a spiritual stagnation leading to degradation; someone treating a spiritual turn towards God as a trifling nod in His direction. By contrast, President Nelson outlines a pattern of deeper and greater spiritual holiness, recognizing that we periodically falter, but always seeking to move forward and work with the Saviour to fulfill our full potential as sons and daughters of both Him and our Heavenly Father.

[Calm]

5 hours ago, bluebell said:

It seems like the two men are coming at the subject of repentance from different angles, both being valid.

To repent literally means to change.  Ideally we are changing a little each day to be more like our Savior and less like the natural man.  Will there ever come a day in mortality where you and I won't need to change some part of us to be perfect like Him?  I don't personally believe so.

But to be using repentance as a way to continue to sin each day and then have a clean slate would be to make a mockery of God's mercy, in my opinion.  We shouldn't use repentance as a way to keep the natural man and try to access God's grace at the same time.  That's not actually repentance because it involves no desire to actually change.  It's more like trying to use repentance as a loop hole I think.

This is my impression as well.  They are talking about two very different types of repentance.  One is a sincere constant effort to turn one’s life over to God, to become more like him and the other is a superficial way of keeping clean, but still intending to play in the mud all day.  It’s trying to use God to escape the consequences of one’s sins rather than trying to forsake sin.

[CV75]

20 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

"Discover the joy of daily repentance" coined by Pres. Nelson is a phrase that has been popular as of late.

But while studying today on repentance in the TOPC manuals, I came across this quote by The Prophet Joseph Smith Jr.:

"Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God."

It seems Brother Joseph wasn't fond of that kind of sentiment and felt we should be progressing to such a point that we shouldn't need to repent daily.

Thoughts?

I think he objects to the trifling, and not the sincere effort in the face of failure and weakness. I think he objects to trifling with both sin and with the daily effort to improve in allegiance and discipleship to Christ, and trifling with the false assumption that we can progress to such a point that we shouldn't need to repent daily without improving daily (even if hat means 2 steps forward, one step back). "Daily" to me suggests what we do in mortality and that godly perfection by grace can 1) still promised by the Holy Spirit while 2) becoming realized at some post-resurrection exalting point by Christ.

[The Nehor]

I suspect Joseph Smith saw sin as more of an explcit and distinct thing, something specifically done or not done.

We tend to think of it as falling short in any way whatsoever. Seriously the way we talk about sin sometimes make me think we want to be neurotic. Good, better, best, and buried in there the idea that the good and better are falling short/sinful. Even if you do good it is sin unless it is the maximum.

The whole ‘repenting and then doing same sin again is worse’ bit I got as a child convinced me to stop trying to repent. I knew that many of the things I did that were sinful I would probably do again so decided to wait to repent until I was sure I wouldn’t do it again. Thanks insane Sunday School teacher!