There is debate in Christianity as to the value of works.  Some Christians believe we are saved by our belief in Christ, and that His grace is sufficient to save us — works are unnecessary.  Both Catholicism and Mormonism (the doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) believe in both faith and works, essentially that we are judged for our works, but saved by God’s grace.

What do the scriptures say?

And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works (Revelation 20:12, 13).

Some men’s sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they followafter.   Likewise also the good works of some are manifest beforehand; and they that are otherwise cannot be hid (1 Timothy 5:24, 25).

So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:   Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer…(2 Thessalonians 1:4-5).

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous (1 John 5:3).

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love (John 15:10).

And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless (Luke 1:6).

And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments (1 John 2:3).

Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent (Revelation 2:5).

And they went out, and preached that men should repent (Mark 6:12).

I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish (Luke 13:3).

Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you (1 Corinthians 11:2).

To members of the Church of Jesus Christ, “works” are repentance, the making and keeping of ordinances, keeping Christ’s commandments, doing good to all men (and women, and children, and all of God’s creations), and enduring to the end faithful in Christ.  That this is true is manifest in the above scriptures from the Bible.  We have more in other scriptures:

For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared (Doctrine and Covenants 76:11).

For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts (D&C 137:9).

And even unto the great and last day, when all people, and all kindreds, and all nations and tongues shall stand before God, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—(3 Nephi 26:4).

And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works (3 Nephi 27:15).

And ye shall go forth baptizing with water, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (D&C 42:7).

And thus we see, that there was a time granted unto man to repent, yea, a probationary time, a time to repent and serve God (Alma 42:4).

Behold, I have given unto you the commandments; therefore keep my commandments. And this is the law and the prophets, for they truly testified of me (3 Nephi 15:10).

Therefore God gave unto them commandments, after having made known unto them the plan of redemption, that they should not do evil, the penalty thereof being a second death, which was an everlasting death as to things pertaining unto righteousness; for on such the plan of redemption could have no power, for the works of justice could not be destroyed, according to the supreme goodness of God (Alma 12:32).

…for out of the books shall your dead be judged, according to their own works, whether they themselves have attended to the ordinances in their own propria persona, or by the means of their own agents, according to the ordinance which God has prepared for their salvation from before the foundation of the world, according to the records which they have kept concerning their dead (D&C 128:8).

And this shall be our covenant—that we will walk in all the ordinances of the Lord (D&C 136:4).

These, then, are works…repentance, kindness, keeping Christ’s commandments, doing His will, becoming like Him, partaking of His ordinances, and keeping our covenants with Him, spoken clearly to us in the Bible, and reiterated and clarified in modern revelation.

We are judged by these works and the intent of our hearts.  But we are saved by grace:

And may God grant, in his great fulness, that men might be brought unto repentance and good works, that they might be restored unto grace for grace, according to their works (Helaman 12:24).

Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God (Moroni 10:32).

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved (2 Nephi 10:24).

Additional Resources:

Finding Happiness

Basic Mormon Beliefs and Real Mormons

Jesus Christ in Mormonism

Mormons and the Bible

As a young member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (inadvertently called “The Mormon Church” by the media), I learned about the atonement of Jesus Christ at a very young age. I prayed in His name, was baptized in His name, and partook of the bread and water of the sacrament weekly, just as He did with his disciples before his crucifixion (Luke 22:18-19). In my prayers, I promised God that I would follow Jesus and serve Him with my life; if I had broken one of His commandments, I asked forgiveness. I worshipped and asked for help every day. In my early 20′s, I went to the temple, where members of The Church of Jesus Christ (Mormons) covenant to follow Christ, keep His commandments, and sacrifice all they have to Him. Yet it was not until I reached the age of 31 that I truly came to understand what Jesus did for me when He suffered in Gethsemane, died on the cross, and was resurrected.

Needing the Savior

I spent Christmas of 1991 in the hospital, fighting for the lives of my unborn twin daughters. They were not due for 12 more weeks, but because of serious complications their lives were in danger. I had blown up like a balloon and was at constant risk of going into labor. My husband and I prayed constantly for our babies’ health and safety, but still felt continual fear. Our three little boys could not understand why Mommy was not home for Christmas.

Three days after Christmas, one of the twins died, and the other was delivered by Caesarian section. Her life, too, hung in the balance as she was rushed to a nearby children’s hospital, given three full units of blood, and placed on life support. In shock and pain, grieving the loss of her sister, we continued to pray for the miracle of health for our remaining daughter, whom we named Sarah.

In a few weeks the verdict was in: Sarah, although healthy in body, had suffered an almost complete loss of mental capacity. Her brain was damaged beyond repair, with only enough healthy tissue left to keep her heart beating and her lungs breathing as the rest slowly died and disappeared. We were devastated. How could God have treated us this way? We were His beloved children, and we worshipped Him and followed our Savior, Jesus Christ, who had miraculously healed the sick and brought the dead to life! Where was the Lord when we needed Him?

As we brought home our tiny, four-pound premie, I tried to settle into life as the mother of a profoundly handicapped child. Sarah required round-the-clock feeding and attention. She did not sleep normally; she fed listlessly; she could not keep her tiny meals down; she cried and arched her back painfully whenever she was not being held. With three other young children who needed me and a still grieving heart, I felt completely overwhelmed. Again I sought help from God through prayer. One day, as I was reading in The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, I came across the following lines in Mosiah 24:13-15. Jesus Christ said to a group of ancient Christians who were enslaved to their enemies:

“Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; …and I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs.”

The Miracle of Grace: Lifting our Burdens

Grace is the miracle the Lord God offers to us, through the atonement of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, that lifts us to Him beyond anything we can do or ever hope to do in this life. “For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do” (The Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 25:23). We must put forth our very best efforts all through our lives to keep the Lord’s commandments–but we will inevitably fall far short. Grace is the gift through which God strengthens us along the way and makes up the difference. One of the three essential gifts we receive by grace through the atonement of Jesus Christ is the gift of comfort and healing. Alma, an ancient prophet, calls it “succor:”

And [Jesus Christ] shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people…and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities (Book of Mormon, Alma 7:11-12).

Relief and hope flooded my heart as I read the words of the Lord. I began to pray differently: not that my Savior would remove my burdens, but that, through the atonement, he would “ease my burdens” and provide succor for my soul. It was then that our miracle began–not a miracle of the flesh, but a miracle of the heart. I began to sense the presence of my tiny daughter’s pure, magnificent soul, and the presence of the angelic spirits who tended to her as she endured her physical trials. Earthly angels entered my life in the guise of loving friends, wise doctors, and understanding social workers who eased my burdens of worry and exhaustion. By the time a few months had passed, I was rejoicing in the opportunity to nurture my beautiful daughter.

 

The Miracle of Healing our Bodies

In order to heal, I needed a second gift of grace. As a Mormon, I believed Sarah’s damaged body housed an immortal spirit that was a literal spirit child of God the Father. Although her brain could not function, her spirit was still experiencing mortal life through her body. When she felt pain, I suffered, knowing she could not remember or anticipate it. Nor could she organize the continual bombardment she experienced through her senses. She could not, for example, tolerate both a breeze and a song at the same time. Nevertheless, her mortal experience was important to her eternal life. I had faith that after this life, she would remember and learn essential truths from what she experienced here. I sang to her, and her spirit responded to the sounds. She would relax in my arms, a rare blessingfor her, as I sang her  a favorite children’s song from a songbook published by The Church of Jesus Christ:

          I Will Follow God’s Plan

My life is a gift; my life has a plan.

My life has a purpose; in heaven it began.

My choice was to come to this lovely home on earth

And seek for God’s light to direct me from birth.

I will follow God’s plan for me,

Holding fast to his words and his love.

I will work, and I will pray.

I will always walk in his way.

Then I will be happy on earth

And in my home above.

“I Will Follow God’s Plan,” by Vanya Watkins

I had faith in my heart that, through the grace of the resurrection of our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ, Sarah would one day fully experience life in a healthy, perfect immortal body. By understanding her past as a spirit daughter of God, her present mortal experience, and the perfection to which she would one day be raised, I found comfort despite her occasional sufferings.

On a trip to visit family just seven months after her birth, Sarah contracted a sudden, severe case of pneumonia. In the whirlwind of rushing her to the emergency room trying to help her breathe, I was forced to decide if the doctors should use oxygen or a ventilator in order to save her life. Visions of her early suffering in the NICU arose in my mind. There was no time to calmly review each choice, and although we prayed, answers were not immediately evident. I tried to see my daughter’s life in terms of the learning and growth of her immortal spirit, and made a decision to withhold treatment. She died in our arms at home just a few hours later, breaking my heart once again.

The Miracle of Forgiveness

The last grace I needed through the atonement of Jesus Christ was perhaps the most serious of all. While I had made the best decision I could, I had made an irrevocable choice in allowing my daughter to move on in her eternal life by leaving this one. If that was a mistake, it was a big one. Like all parents, I agonized over my imperfections. Like all mortals, I was lost unless my Redeemer intervened in my behalf. Without the Savior’s atonement, Sarah was gone forever; and I was cut off from God unless Jesus Christ atoned for all my sins. I reached up and grasped His promises with both hands. Isaiah’s promise was a light in the darkness to me: 

“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18

Amazing Grace: The Atonement of Jesus Christ

The world has never been the same for me since Sarah lived and died. Sarah brought me face to face with suffering, sin, and death, and my own great need for a Savior and Redeemer. Despite my best efforts, in the depths of my need, I was indeed lost. Through the sacrifice of the blood and body of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, I was strengthened, healed, forgiven, and found. He has paid my debt, and I owe every breath of my life to Him. I live in hope of a glorious resurrection where Sarah will be reunited with our family, our physical bodies made perfect, to continue to grow in God’s presence for all eternity. Through Jesus’ grace we have been saved, after all we could do. It is indeed Amazing Grace to me.

Nora Moore Hess

          Nora Moore Hess is a writer and musician living in Lindon, Utah. She is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon). Nora and her husband, Bret, are the parents of seven biological and three adopted children.

Additional Resources: 

Jesus Christ, the Son of God

Jesus Christ, Our Savior

The Living Christ

Amazing Grace Video

Experiencing Our Debt

The realization of our powerlessness without the Lord Jesus Christ‘s divine help allows us to rely on His grace as our true source of strength. The words of the hymn “Come, Thou Fount of every Blessing” emphasize how easy it is for human souls to stray and how indebted we are to our Savior’s grace to bind our wandering souls to Him.

O to grace how great a debtor

Daily I’m constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,

Bind my wandering heart to Thee.

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,

Prone to leave the god I love;

Here’s my heart, o take and seal it,

Seal it for thy courts above.

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently called the “Mormon Church” by friends of other faiths), we believe that we are all debtors to our Savior’s infinite grace—a debt we can never repay. We are all lost sheep in need of our shepherd’s constant guidance. Even as members of Jesus Christ’s restored Church we are lost sheep, prone to wander because we often overemphasize our finite part in the gospel covenant. In doing so, we are in danger of overlooking the fact that we are wholly reliant on our Savior’s grace.

Many of us misinterpret Nephi’s statement (Nephi is a prophet in the Book of Mormon), “For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do” (2 Nephi 25:23). Some have interpreted this verse to say that we must do everything we possibly can to perfect ourselves; then, once we have exhausted every ounce of self-sufficiency, self-discipline, and self-righteousness, the Lord will complete whatever perfecting is left over.

When we do this, we are in danger of taking an almost anti-Christ position by placing our reliance on the god of self. We seem to be saying that most of the merit for our salvation goes to ourselves. It also seems to be saying that we should try everything in our power to not need the Savior’s help; however, if we should fall a little short, we will gladly allow Him to make up the difference. This reveals a very shallow understanding of the Lord’s infinite contribution to our covenant relationship. Only by being in a covenant relationship with Christ, an infinite being, can our spiritual account reflect the infinite merits sufficient to save and exalt us. Our finite part will never begin to be sufficient.

A formula that might assist us in understanding the drastic difference between our insufficient (finite) part in the covenant and the Savior’s sufficient (infinite) part, is this: I – F = I. In other words, the difference between that which is infinite and that, which is finite, is always an infinite difference. The difference between what we do and what the Savior does for us will always be infinite. Even if we took F and raised it to the one-hundredth power, the difference would be the same—infinite.

No matter how big F becomes, the difference between something infinite and something finite will always be an infinite difference. No matter how much effort we put into our part of the covenant, we will still be completely reliant on the Savior’s infinite power to save us. As fallen mortals, we are always “unprofitable servants” (Mosiah 2:21).

We should give Jesus Christ all the glory for His infinite contribution to our salvation. We should rejoice in knowing that He carried out the infinite and eternal atoning sacrifice for us. We should praise and worship Him for his amazing grace. It is an infinite gift that we could never provide for ourselves.

What do we think we can accomplish by ourselves, anyway? Although our willing participation is essential, nothing we do will ever be sufficient. All we can do is come to Jesus Christ, partake of His saving grace, and be reconciled to our Father through His atoning blood. We are, of course, completely reliant on His grace as He enables us even in taking those steps. We are dependent on His grace to enable us in exercising faith. We are dependent on His grace to enable us in our strivings to obey His commandments. We are debtors to His grace every step of the way.

Jacob (a Book of Mormon prophet), who had seen the Savior in his youth, taught of our reliance on the Savior’s grace: “Reconcile yourselves to the will of god, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto god, that it is only in and through the grace of god that ye are saved” (2 Nephi 10:24).

Moroni (another prophet who testified of Christ in the Book of Mormon) testified that salvation is available when we come to Jesus Christ and let the enabling power of His grace work in us to complete and perfect us. He said, “yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love god with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of god ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of god” (Moroni 10:32).

Sydney Reynolds, speaking at a Brigham Young University (BYU) Women’s Conference, said, “The kind of perfection Moroni was talking about when he invites us to come unto Christ has nothing to do with flawless accomplishment. It does not even have anything to do with exceptional competence or skill in a given area, but it has everything to do with having faith in the Lord, repenting of sin, and keeping the Lord’s commandments.”6 As Neal A Maxwell said, “The Church is ‘for perfecting the Saints’ (Ephesians 4:12); it is not a well-provisioned rest home for the already perfected.”7

Notice that Moroni did not say, “Perfect yourself first, and then you can come unto Christ.” We have absolutely no power as fallen men to make or keep ourselves worthy without the grace of our Savior Jesus Christ. We are told to first come to Christ, and He will begin the process of perfecting and completing us in Him. Then is His grace sufficient to enable us to deny ourselves of ungodliness. His grace, then, continues to work in us by sanctifying us and making us holy without spot. This is done only in and through His grace and His atoning blood.

Moroni continues: “And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of god, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is is the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot” (Moroni 10:33).

Additional Resources:

For more information about Jesus Christ and His infinite Atonement and grace, please visit the official site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently called by friends of other faiths as the “Mormon Church“).

The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. Request a free copy of the Book of Mormon.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ is paramount to the beliefs of the Mormons.

Source:

R. Brown, Experiencing Christ, (Springville, Utah: Cedar Fort, Inc., 2009), 41-44.

Jesus Christ did not actually use the word grace in His earthly ministry. Only two verses reference this word in the four gospels, and these were both spoken by others. Luke tells us the grace of God was on Jesus as a child. John taught: “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ (John 1:17, King James Version of the Bible). Therefore, our understanding of the word grace comes from others.

Let’s look at a few uses of the word grace in the Bible. Although these were spoken after the Savior’s death, they were spoken by His apostles.

The first New Testament reference that gives real information about grace is found in Acts, chapter 15. Paul was listening to church members arguing over the issue of circumcision for gentiles. In the past, the gospel had not been taught to the gentiles, and so this was a fairly recent issue. Paul, deciding he’d heard enough or perhaps was tired of the debate, stood up and reminded them they had been instructed to teach the gentiles and that the issue of circumcision had already been dealt with. Circumcision as a required practice ended with the atonement of Jesus Christ. It was through this atonement that we are saved, not through the act of circumcision, which had been intended to remind men of God’s covenant with Abraham. Therefore, we learn that grace comes through Jesus Christ, and that it is only through Him that we can be saved.

In Romans, chapter three, Paul is again coping with disagreements over circumcision. He reminds them that all men are sinners and that circumcision is not going to save anyone from his sins. In verses 23 to 25, he writes:

23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

Justification means to be restored to our proper relationship with God after we’ve sinned. None of us can do that on our own. Had Jesus Christ not been willing to atone for our sins, no amount of repentance, obedience, or faith would have saved us. The smallest sin would keep us out of God’s presence. Because of the atonement, we can restore our place in God’s kingdom. Grace makes this possible.

Grace means we can be resurrected after our deaths. It gives us other blessings as well. We are not accountable for the choices Adam and Eve made in the Garden of Eden and when we commit a sin, we are able to repent if we choose to do so, and to be forgiven when we do. Everyone who came to earth receives grace freely, without any actions or choices on his own part. Mormons are among the few who truly believe grace is not dependent on works, not even the act of making a formal statement of acceptance of the Savior’s atonement. It is freely given to everyone.

Those who accept Jesus Christ as their Savior can receive even more blessings as a result of the atonement. Grace makes them possible, but these additional blessings are not available to everyone. To receive them, a person must accept Jesus Christ as his Savior and take upon himself Christ’s name. Because taking on the name of the Savior—being known as a Christian—is such a sacred responsibility, we must honor that commitment by living the gospel out of love and faith, and not simply a desire for reward.

Those who do this, who keep the commandments, can do more than merely be resurrected and live forever. They can live with God forever. The scriptures teach us that no unclean thing can dwell in heaven, and certainly, anyone thinking it through will understand that it would be inappropriate for the unrepentant to dwell with God. When we die and are resurrected, we take with us ourselves. We will still be the person we were before we died, in terms of character and personality. Heaven will be wonderful because we are with God and are not living in an earthly state, surrounded by those who do not honor truth or want to live in the manner God commanded.

The Book of Mormon helps to explain the relationship between grace, which allows us to be resurrected and to live forever, and exaltation, which allows us to return to God:

23 For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

24 And, notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we keep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled.

25 For, for this end was the law given; wherefore the law hath become dead unto us, and we are made alive in Christ because of our faith; yet we keep the law because of the commandments.

26 And we ^atalk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we ^bprophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our ^cchildren may know to what source they may look for a ^dremission of their sins.

27 Wherefore, we speak concerning the law that our children may know the deadness of the law; and they, by knowing the deadness of the law, may look forward unto that life which is in Christ, and know for what end the law was given. And after the law is fulfilled in Christ, that they need not harden their hearts against him when the law ought to be done away.

(See 2 Nephi 25.)

This scripture outlines several critical points. First, it tells us that the purpose of the Book of Mormon is to bring people to Christ and to help them believe in Him. Next it explains that we are saved by grace—after all we can do. This phrase is sometimes confusing to those who are hearing it for the first time. What does it mean?

It tells us we cannot save ourselves. As mentioned early, works cannot save us. God, like any good father, expects us to do as much for ourselves as possible. In this case, this refers to keeping the commandments. However, that is not enough, and the remaining requirements are beyond our abilities to carry out. This is where grace comes in. We do what we can, and then Christ makes up the difference. He does for us what we cannot do for ourselves, which is the atonement.

The remaining sections tell us the Nephites, who were the people who made this record, kept the Law of Moses, having come from Jerusalem at the time of the prophet Jeremiah, because the Savior had not yet come and atoned for them. However, they understood that the law would not save them; it was merely there to help them remember God and to prepare.

Verse 26 is the key to understanding the concept of grace. We must look to Christ to have our sins forgiven, because we can’t forgive them ourselves, no matter how hard we work.

Our obedience is from love, not greed, in order to be true obedience. It should be a natural outgrowth of our conversion to Christianity. The result of this is a promise the Savior Himself made to those who honor His name:

“10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 15:10)

Let not ignorance and thoughtlessness lead us into the error of assuming that the Father’s foreknowledge as to what would be, under given conditions, determined that such must be. It was not His design that the souls of mankind be lost; on the contrary it was and is His work and glory, “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). Nevertheless He saw the evil into which His children would assuredly fall; and with infinite love and mercy did He ordain means of averting the dire effect, provided the transgressor would elect to avail himself thereof. The offer of the firstborn Son to establish through His own ministry among men the gospel of salvation, and to sacrifice Himself, through labor, humiliation and suffering even unto death, was accepted and made the foreordained plan of man’s redemption from death, of his eventual salvation from the effects of sin, and of his possible exaltation through righteous achievement.

In accordance with the plan adopted in the council of the Gods, man was created as an embodied spirit; his tabernacle of flesh was composed of the elements of earth. He was given commandment and law, and was free to obey or disobey—with the just and inevitable condition that he should enjoy or suffer the natural results of his choice. Adam, the first man placed upon the earth in pursuance of the established plan, and Eve who was given unto him as companion and associate, indispensable to him in the appointed mission of peopling the earth, disobeyed the express commandment of God and so brought about the “fall of man”, whereby the mortal state, of which death is an essential element, was inaugurated. It is not proposed to consider here at length the doctrine of the fall; for the present argument it is sufficient to establish the fact of the momentous occurrence and its portentous consequences.

The woman was deceived, and in direct violation of counsel and commandment partook of the food that had been forbidden, as a result of which act her body became degenerate and subject to death. Adam realized the disparity that had been brought between him and his companion, and with some measure of understanding followed her course, thus becoming her partner in bodily degeneracy.

The man and the woman had now become mortal; through indulgence in food unsuited to their nature and condition and against which they had been specifically warned, and as the inevitable result of their disobeying the divine law and commandment, they became liable to the physical ailments and bodily frailties to which mankind has since been the natural heir. Those bodies, which before the fall had been perfect in form and function, were now subjects for eventual dissolution or death. The arch-tempter through whose sophistries, half-truths and infamous falsehoods, Eve had been beguiled, was none other than Satan, or Lucifer, that rebellious and fallen “son of the morning”, whose proposal involving the destruction of man’s liberty had been rejected in the council of the heavens, and who had been “cast out into the earth”, he and all his angels as unbodied spirits, never to be tabernacled in bodies of their own. As an act of diabolic reprisal following his rejection in the council, his defeat by Michael and the heavenly hosts, and his ignominious expulsion from heaven, Satan planned to destroy the bodies in which the faithful spirits—those who had kept their first estate—would be born; and his beguilement of Eve was but an early stage of that infernal scheme.

Death has come to be the universal heritage; it may claim its victim in infancy or youth, in the period of life’s prime, or its summons may be deferred until the snows of age have gathered upon the hoary head; it may befall as the result of accident or disease, by violence, or as we say, through natural causes; but come it must, as Satan well knows; and in this knowledge is his present though but temporary triumph. But the purposes of God, as they ever have been and ever shall be, are infinitely superior to the deepest designs of men or devils; and the Satanic machinations to make death inevitable, perpetual and supreme were provided against even before the first man had been created in the flesh. The atonement to be wrought by Jesus the Christ was ordained to overcome death and to provide a means of ransom from the power of Satan.

As the penalty incident to the fall came upon the race through an individual act, it would be manifestly unjust, and therefore impossible as part of the divine purpose, to make all men suffer the results thereof without provision for deliverance. Moreover, since by the transgression of one man sin came into the world and death was entailed upon all, it is consistent with reason that the atonement thus made necessary should be wrought by one. “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned … Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.” So taught the apostle Paul; and, further: “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (Romans 5:12-18).

The atonement was plainly to be a vicarious sacrifice, voluntary and love-inspired on the Savior’s part, universal in its application to mankind so far as men shall accept the means of deliverance thus placed within their reach. For such a mission only one who was without sin could be eligible. Even the altar victims of ancient Israel offered as a provisional propitiation for the offenses of the people under the Mosaic law had to be clean and devoid of spot or blemish; otherwise they were unacceptable and the attempt to offer them was sacrilege. Jesus Christ was the only Being suited to the requirements of the great sacrifice:

1—As the one and only sinless Man;

2—As the Only Begotten of the Father and therefore the only Being born to earth possessing in their fulness the attributes of both Godhood and manhood;

3—As the One who had been chosen in the heavens and foreordained to this service.

What other man has been without sin, and therefore wholly exempt from the dominion of Satan, and to whom death, the wage of sin, is not naturally due? Had Jesus Christ met death as other men have done—the result of the power that Satan has gained over them through their sins—His death would have been but an individual experience, expiatory in no degree of any faults or offenses but His own. Christ’s absolute sinlessness made Him eligible, His humility and willingness rendered Him acceptable to the Father, as the atoning sacrifice whereby propitiation could be made for the sins of all men.

What other man has lived with power to withstand death, over whom death could not prevail except through his own submission? Yet Jesus Christ could not be slain until His “hour had come”, and that, the hour in which He voluntarily surrendered His life, and permitted His own decease through an act of will. Born of a mortal mother He inherited the capacity to die; begotten by an immortal Sire He possessed as a heritage the power to withstand death indefinitely. He literally gave up His life; to this effect is His own affirmation: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again” ( John 10:17-18). And further: “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself” (John 5:26). Only such a One could conquer death; in none but Jesus the Christ was realized this requisite condition of a Redeemer of the world.

What other man has come to earth with such appointment, clothed with the authority of such foreordination? The atoning mission of Jesus Christ was no self-assumption. True, He had offered Himself when the call was made in the heavens; true, He had been accepted, and in due time came to earth to carry into effect the terms of that acceptance; but He was chosen by One greater than Himself. The burden of His confession of authority was ever to the effect that He operated under the direction of the Father, as witness these words: “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38).

Through the atonement accomplished by Jesus Christ—a redeeming service, vicariously rendered in behalf of mankind, all of whom have become estranged from God by the effects of sin both inherited and individually incurred—the way is opened for a reconciliation whereby man may come again into communion with God, and be made fit to dwell anew and forever in the presence of his Eternal Father. This basal thought is admirably implied in our English word, “atonement,” which, as its syllables attest, is at-one-ment, “denoting reconciliation, or the bringing into agreement those who have been estranged” (New Standard Dictionary). The effect of the atonement may be conveniently considered as twofold:

1—The universal redemption of the human race from death invoked by the fall of our first parents; and,

2—Salvation, whereby means of relief from the results of individual sin are provided.

The victory over death was made manifest in the resurrection of the crucified Christ; He was the first to pass from death to immortality and so is justly known as “the first fruits of them that slept” (1 Cor. 15:20). That the resurrection of the dead so inaugurated is to be extended to every one who has or shall have lived is proved by an abundance of scriptural evidence. Following our Lord’s resurrection, others who had slept in the tomb arose and were seen of many, not as spirit-apparitions but as resurrected beings possessing immortalized bodies: “And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many” (Matt. 27:52, 53).

Those who thus early came forth are spoken of as “the saints”; and other scriptures confirm the fact that only the righteous shall be brought forth in the earlier stages of the resurrection yet to be consummated; but that all the dead shall in turn resume bodies of flesh and bones is placed beyond doubt by the revealed word. The Savior’s direct affirmation ought to be conclusive: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live…. Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” (John 5:25-29). The doctrine of a universal resurrection was taught by the apostles of old, as also by the Nephite prophets; and the same is confirmed by revelation incident to the present dispensation. Even the heathen who have not known God shall be brought forth from their graves; and, inasmuch as they have lived and died in ignorance of the saving law, a means of making the plan of salvation known unto them is provided. “And then shall the heathen nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first resurrection” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:54).

Jacob, a Nephite prophet, taught the universality of the resurrection, and set forth the absolute need of a Redeemer, without whom the purposes of God in the creation of man would be rendered futile. His words constitute a concise and forceful summary of revealed truth directly bearing upon our present subject:

“For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen, they were cut off from the presence of the Lord; wherefore it must needs be an infinite atonement; save it should be an infinite atonement, this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man, must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more. O the wisdom of God! his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more, our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more. And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents; who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder, and all manner of secret works of darkness. O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I call the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit. And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death, of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave. And this death of which I have spoken, which is the spiritual death, shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell; wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel. O how great the plan of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh; save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect” (2 Nephi 9:6-13).

The application of the atonement to individual transgression, whereby the sinner may obtain absolution through compliance with the laws and ordinances embodied in the gospel of Jesus Christ, is conclusively attested by scripture. Since forgiveness of sins can be secured in none other way, there being either in heaven or earth no name save that of Jesus Christ whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, every soul stands in need of the Savior’s mediation, since all are sinners. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”, said Paul of old, and John the apostle added his testimony in these words: “If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

Who shall question the justice of God, which denies salvation to all who will not comply with the prescribed conditions on which alone it is declared obtainable? Christ is the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him, and God “will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life: but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil” (Rom. 2:6-9).

Such then is the need of a Redeemer, for without Him mankind would forever remain in a fallen state, and as to hope of eternal progression would be inevitably lost. The mortal probation is provided as an opportunity for advancement; but so great are the difficulties and the dangers, so strong is the influence of evil in the world, and so weak is man in resistance thereto, that without the aid of a power above that of humanity no soul would find its way back to God from whom it came. The need of a Redeemer lies in the inability of man to raise himself from the temporal to the spiritual plane, from the lower kingdom to the higher. In this conception we are not without analogies in the natural world. We recognize a fundamental distinction between inanimate and living matter, between the inorganic and the organic, between the lifeless mineral on the one hand and the living plant or animal on the other. Within the limitations of its order the dead mineral grows by accretion of substance, and may attain a relatively perfect condition of structure and form as is seen in the crystal. But mineral matter, though acted upon favorably by the forces of nature—light, heat, electric energy and others—can never become a living organism; nor can the dead elements, through any process of chemical combination dissociated from life, enter into the tissues of the plant as essential parts thereof. But the plant, which is of a higher order, sends its rootlets into the earth, spreads its leaves in the atmosphere, and through these organs absorbs the solutions of the soil, inspires the gases of the air, and from such lifeless materials weaves the tissue of its wondrous structure. No mineral particle, no dead chemical substance has ever been made a constituent of organic tissue except through the agency of life. We may, perhaps with profit, carry the analogy a step farther. The plant is unable to advance its own tissue to the animal plane. Though it be the recognized order of nature that the “animal kingdom” is dependent upon the “vegetable kingdom” for its sustenance, the substance of the plant may become part of the animal organism only as the latter reaches down from its higher plane and by its own vital action incorporates the vegetable compounds with itself. In turn, animal matter can never become, even transitorily, part of a human body, except as the living man assimilates it, and by the vital processes of his own existence lifts, for the time being, the substance of the animal that supplied him food to the higher plane of his own existence. The comparison herein employed is admittedly defective if carried beyond reasonable limits of application; for the raising of mineral matter to the plane of the plant, vegetable tissue to the level of the animal, and the elevation of either to the human plane, is but a temporary change; with the dissolution of the higher tissues the material thereof falls again to the level of the inanimate and the dead. But, as a means of illustration the analogy may not be wholly without value.

So, for the advancement of man from his present fallen and relatively degenerate state to the higher condition of spiritual life, a power above his own must cooperate. Through the operation of the laws obtaining in the higher kingdom man may be reached and lifted; himself he cannot save by his own unaided effort. A Redeemer and Savior of mankind is beyond all question essential to the realization of the plan of the Eternal Father, “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man”; and that Redeemer and Savior is Jesus the Christ, beside whom there is and can be none other (Moses 1:39).