“Ye Are Clean, but Not All”

At the Last Supper, before beginning the meal, the Savior washed the feet of His disciples. Emphasizing the symbolic nature of this action to them, He said, “Ye are clean, but not all” (John 13:10). John explained that this statement referred to Judas Iscariot, who was among them, but who had already committed to betray Him.

In January 1831, at a church conference, the Lord made the same statement to the members of the church who had gathered. “Ye are clean, but not all,” He said, and added, “Verily some of you are guilty before me, but I will be merciful unto your weakness” (Doctrine and Covenants 38:10).

Even though the Savior was speaking to a group of people on both of these occasions, I have been thinking about this statement on an individual level today. In what ways am I only partially clean? What can I do to become more clean?

Alma asked the people of Zarahemla to assess their readiness to stand before God. “Can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?” he asked. “Could ye say, if ye were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that…your garments have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ, who will come to redeem his people from their sins?” (Alma 5:19, 27). And Mormon indicated that “there was not any man who could do a miracle in the name of Jesus save he were cleansed every whit from his iniquity” (3 Nephi 8:1).

A couple of weeks ago in General Conference, President Russell M. Nelson invited us to “pray to identify the debris you should remove from your life so you can become more worthy” (“Welcome Message,” General Conference, April 2021).

Today, I will identify ways I can become more clean. I will seek the help of the Savior as I remove the debris from my life and become more prepared to stand in the presence of God.