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.
The term "natural man" has been defined as in the Guide to the Scriptures as
A person who chooses to be influenced by the passions, desires, appetites, and senses of the flesh rather than by the promptings of the Holy Spirit."Robert Millet, describing the natural man as falling along a spectrum states the following:
At the one end of the spectrum, the natural man may be a person bent on lasciviousness; he may be one who loves Satan more than God and thereby is carnal, sensual, and devilish. (See Moses 5:13.) Of such Alma said: “All men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness.” (Alma 41:11; see also Mosiah 16:2–5.)
At the other end of the spectrum, the natural man may well be a “nice man,” a moral and upright person bent upon benevolence. Such a person, acclimated to the present fallen world, still does not enjoy the enlivening powers of the Holy Ghost and does not enjoy the sanctifying power of Christ’s covenants and ordinances. Even though the light of Christ is making an impact on him, he has not followed it into the Lord’s full gospel truths.
If you were to have a discussion with your personal "natural man" or "natural woman", what would be said? When does your "natural man/woman" upset your plans? When is your "natural man/woman" stronger than you? What do you do that is effective at defeating your "natural man/woman". Ponder and answer these questions in your journal.
In contrast to the identity of the natural man lies our eternal identity. In speaking of our eternal identity, Sister Catherine Thomas said the following:
"Like our Savior, though to a lesser degree, we condescended to come to a fallen world, having agreed to submit to a considerable reduction in our premortal powers. As we came to earth, separated from the presence of heavenly parents, we died spiritually (see Helaman 14:16) and, in a sense, we were “orphaned.” And now, with memory veiled, and much reduced from our premortal estate—somewhat as aliens in a world that is inimical to our spiritual natures—we may carry an insecurity, a self-pain that pervades much of our emotional life. Like Adam and Eve, we feel our self-consciousness or spiritual nakedness...
... Our Savior, who felt all this pain himself (Alma 7:11–13), would not send us to earth without compensation for the distresses he knew we would feel, separated from him. He would not leave us comfortless. You recall the passages in John in which the Savior has told the Twelve that he will be with them only a little while (John 13:33). Peter responds with, “Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy sake” (John 13:37). Jesus senses their pain, almost their desperation, at his leaving them. He promises, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you” (John 14:18). The English word comfortless translates the Greek word for “orphans”: “I will not leave you orphaned.” The Savior continued,
If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. . . .
. . . my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. [John 14:23, 27]
Here we grasp the stunning insight that the Lord Jesus Christ himself is that consolation, that compensation, designed from the foundation of the world to comfort the human pain of fallenness, to compensate men and women for their earthly reductions and sacrifices. Only the Atonement, or more expressly, the At-one-ment, can heal the pain of the Fall."
Quoting Mosiah 3:19, Sis Thomas asks "could this putting off of the natural man through the Lord Jesus Christ actually be a recovery of our true, premortal self?" As we go through the week, ponder on your identity of light, and reflect in your journal what impact these thoughts have on your desires to put off the "natural man".
Resources:
Guide to the Scriptures (Bible Dictionary)
https://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs/natural-man
Robert L Millet : Putting off the Natural Man : An Enemy to God
https://www.lds.org/ensign/1992/06/putting-off-the-natural-man-an-enemy-to-god?lang=eng
David W Hellem : Putting off the Natural Man : How to be Spiritually Born of God
https://www.lds.org/ensign/1992/06/putting-off-the-natural-man-how-to-be-spiritually-born-of-god?lang=eng
Sally H Barlow : The Crucibles of Eternal Identity
http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=917
Robert C Oakes : Your Divine Heritage
https://www.lds.org/ensign/2008/04/your-divine-heritage?lang=eng
http://speeches.byu.edu/index.php?act=viewitem&id=1534
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