Jesus taught, “There is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.” And He added, “Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops” (Luke 12:2-3, Matthew 10:26-27).
Mormon believed that this principle applies to our sins:
I, Mormon, do not desire to harrow up the souls of men in casting before them such an awful scene of blood and carnage as was laid before mine eyes; but I, knowing that these things must surely be made known, and that all things which are hid must be revealed upon the house-tops— … therefore I write a small abridgment.
Mormon 5:9
So much for data privacy!
Of course, it’s important for us to protect confidential information entrusted to us. That is a fundamental requirement for building trust with other people and with God. Joseph Smith once said, “The reason we do not have the secrets of the Lord revealed unto us, is because we do not keep them, but reveal them.” Then, he added, “I can keep a secret till Doomsday” (JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. C-1, addenda, created 18 Oct.–ca. 20 Nov. 1854).
Still, as we keep some information private, it’s important to remember that permanent privacy is probably impossible to achieve. Consider the following:
- Many things that you would like to keep secret from other people, they may already know or at least suspect.
- Truth has a way of coming out over time. Even carefully controlled information tends to become public eventually, especially when it meets a need or answers a question.
- At the Final Judgment, our ultimate character will be on full display. The details of our desires and decisions may be less important at that point than their ultimate effect—what we have become.
President Dallin H. Oaks observed:
We hear of prominent officials who have lied about their secret acts. We learn of honored sports heroes who have lied about gambling on the outcome of their games or using drugs to enhance their performance. We see less well-known persons engaging in evil acts in secret they would never do in public. Perhaps they think no one will ever know. But God always knows. And He has repeatedly warned that the time will come when “[our] iniquities shall be spoken upon the housetops, and [our] secret acts shall be revealed” (D&C 1:3; see also Morm. 5:8; D&C 38:7).
“Be Not Deceived,” General Conference, October 2004
Of course, we have all sinned. We all have dirty laundry that we’d rather keep hidden in the closet. But we’re much better off when we realize that it’s a losing battle. The closet will eventually be opened. The laundry will be visible. The good news of the gospel is that God can help us empty the closet now and clean the laundry. No wonder He characterized the preface to the Doctrine and Covenants as a “voice of warning” (Doctrine and Covenants 1:3-4). All things will eventually be revealed, so now is the time to prepare.
Today, I will treat my life as an open book. I will assume that my decisions and desires are, or will be, visible to others. I will clean up the areas of my life that I’d rather not share, and I will be grateful that God has made it possible for me to repent, change my habits, and overcome the effects of prior mistakes.
Leave a Reply