Benjamin teaches that even people whose souls are fully committed to God are “unprofitable servants.” In Mormonism, no human being is considered capable of saving himself or herself; we must all lean on the merits of Christ and his atonement. Benjamin does not speak of Christ here (which he does further into his speech), but the connection is clear. As LDS president Joseph Fielding Smith taught, “we never could repay” Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ “no matter how hard we labor.” The debt is simply too great.