Brother Ogden’s son Danielwas in Europe several years ago on an assignment from the United States government for three weeks to conduct interviews for top-secret clearance of U.S. military personnel and civilians, along with a few civilians from other countries. He described the interview questions in some detail, and in some respects, they are far more extensive than a Latter-day Saint’s temple recommend interview. Before he even sat down with a person, Daniel had in his possession the person’s police records, national agency records, financial records, credit reports, and so on. He probed where the individuals had been and who they had been with for business or pleasure. He inquired if they had ever used drugs or alcohol (how much and how often); if they had ever been convicted of any crime; if they had ever been divorced, been involved in any sexual misconduct, had any extramarital affairs, or been guilty of any abuse. He had to have details of any and all debt the individual had. The searching questions were to establish their loyalty and honesty. The basic idea of the interview of each individual was to answer the question: Can this person be trusted?
What an interesting phenomenon from a gospel perspective. Isn’t that exactly what will happen to you as you pass into the eternal worlds to be judged in regard to your earth life? Are you not here to be cleared for capacity and worthiness to receive all the top secrets of godliness and to prove that you can be trusted to perform work similar to our Heavenly Father’s? According to this verse in Alma, a person’s worthiness to be entrusted with the mysteries of God is directly related to the hardness or softness of his heart. Living the gospel of Jesus Christ ensures that your heart will remain soft, pliable, and receptive to “the greater portion of the word” and the eventual fulness of the mysteries of godliness.