Jesus Christ: A Life Motivated by Love

When Jesus Christ came to this earth He said, “I came...not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). God’s purpose—His will—is “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39).

Through the Atonement our Savior was able to bring about immortality—living forever. Every human soul who lived on this earth will be given the gift of a resurrected body, “restored unto its perfect frame, bone to his bone, and the sinews and the flesh upon them, the spirit and the body to be united never again to be divided” (Doctrine & Covenants 138:17). Through His service on the earth He was able to bring people to His Father, and thus help them progress toward eternal life—living like God.

We live in a fallen world. Our bodies are fallen. our thoughts are fallen. The Lord stated, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9). By lifting ourselves, and our thoughts, to a higher plain—far above our fallen state—we can see the horizon more clearly. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught,

“The nearer man approaches perfection, the clearer are his views, and the greater his enjoyments, till he has overcome the evils of his life and lost every desire for sin; and like the ancients, arrives at that point of faith where he is wrapped in the power and glory of his Maker and is caught up to dwell with Him” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 51).

It must have been this clarity of vision that allowed the Savior to look beyond the throngs of people that continually surrounded Him. Some were interested in His teachings, others in His miracles, and others sought to condemn Him:

“But as he went the people thronged him” (Luke 8:42).

“there were many coming and going, and they [Jesus and His apostles] had no leisure so much as to eat” (Mark 6:31).

“and great multitudes followed him” (Matthew 12:15).

“And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole” (Mark 6:56).

Jesus had compassion on those who followed Him, “because they…were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). He wanted to teach them a better way, a higher way, so that they could find direction in their lives, and ultimately "seek for the things of a better [world]" (Doctrine & Covenants 25:10). 

Before this earth life our Savior had progressed so much that He was “like unto God” (Abraham 3:24). He had perfected every attribute possible: love, compassion, patience, kindness, gentleness, charity, and the list goes on and on. Tad R. Callister stated, 

“[T]he great Jehovah, creator of worlds without number, infinite in virtue and power, made his entry into this world in swaddling clothes and a manger. 

“Be that as it may, no one could mask his godhood. One might clothe his spirit with flesh and blood, wrap him in mortal garb, draw the veil of forgetfulness across his mind, but no one, absolutely no one, could rob him of his divinely inherited traits. They could not be buried in his mortal frame. They could not be silenced. Every moment of every day his godly attributes were etching themselves on his outer shell. They manifested themselves in every smile, every glance, every spoken word. Godliness exuded itself in every thought, every action, and every deed” (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p64).

It makes me wonder if there are any attributes or gifts that I perfected in heaven that are trying to etch themselves on my mortal frame.

People were drawn toward the love that emanated from the Savior. Even getting close enough to touch His robe provided healing—to those who had faith (see Mark 5:25-34).

Jesus lived a life of service: service to His God shown by His service to others. King Benjamin taught, “that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God” (Mosiah 2:17). Being in the service of His God, the Savior was acting like God. For “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do” (John 5:19). By watching how Jesus treated others, we can come to better understand how deeply our Heavenly Father loves each one of us, no matter where we are in life, or what we’ve done. We are all His children.

“And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,

“They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.

“Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?

“This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.

“So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

"And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

“And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

“When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?

“She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (John 8: 3-11).

Jesus did not condemn her. To condemn means to “express complete disapproval of, typically in public”, it can also mean to criticize, reprimand (link to definition), and many other things He could have done. But He did not. He did not bring up the sin, or chastise her for what she had done. He told her to go and sin no more. 

He looks at our sins in the same way. He may be sorrowful that we choose to sin, but He will not condemn us. He loves us—perfectly. Perfect love is something that I think we as mortals, living in an imperfect world, will never understand in this life. It is hard to understand someone who will love us so much, no matter what we do. When on the cross Jesus spoke of those who were crucifying Him when He said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). He held no condemning feelings even in the midst of His suffering. His love not only extended to those who were trying to do what was right, but for those who despitefully used Him and persecuted Him (see Matthew 5:44).

If we can understand the love of our Savior, we can catch a glimpse of the unending love that our Father in Heaven has for each of us. Elder Richard G. Scott said, “Our Heavenly Father did not put us on earth to fail but to succeed gloriously” (link to talk).

As we come to know more about the life of the Savior we will see the amazing good He did for the world. As we draw closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ, we will be able to come to know Him more. As we come to know Him more, we will recognize His never-ending, unfailing, and merciful love; and a life so motivated by pure love that He willingly lay down His life for each of us.

Jesus Christ: Foreordained Savior and Redeemer

“In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). 

That was the beginning of this earth, not the beginning of our existence, or the beginning of God. Abraham was shown in vision the many creations of God and, “the intelligences that were organized before the world was…And there stood one among [the noble and great ones] that was like unto God” (Abraham 3:22, 24). Through our ability to choose, and our actions, we progressed at differing rates before coming to earth; thus some had achieved the status of “noble and great”.

In the premortal world we had reached a point where we could no longer progress solely as spirits. God, our Heavenly Father, presented His plan. We would have the privilege of coming down to earth to obtain a body and learn from our own experience between good an evil. If we were faithful we could return to live with our Father in Heaven eternally in glory—like Him. We were so excited that we shouted for joy! (see Job 38:7).

However, as James E. Talmage taught, 

“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” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p25). 

Our Father knew that we would fail. He knew that we would make mistakes. He knew that we (each and every one of us, save Jesus only) would forfeit our eternal destiny through our actions on earth. From this dispensation we read,

“[W]e know that there is a God in heaven, who is infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting the same unchangeable God, the framer of heaven and earth, and all things which are in them;

“And that he created man, male and female, after his own image and in his own likeness, created he them;

“And gave unto them commandments that they should love and serve him, the only living and true God, and that he should be the only being whom they should worship.

“But by the transgression of these holy laws man became sensual and devilish, and became fallen man.

“Wherefore, the Almighty God gave his Only Begotten Son, as it is written in those scriptures which have been given of him” (Doctrine & Covenants 20:17-21).

He had prepared a way. His decision to choose Jesus wasn’t something that He had to decide at the moment Lucifer approached Him. In the Bible Dictionary we read that, “Jesus is spoken of as the Christ and the Messiah, which means He is the one anointed of the Father to be His personal representative in all things pertaining to the salvation of mankind” (Bible Dictionary: Anointed One). Jesus Christ had been chosen from the beginning to be our Savior, and He was presented to us as part of the plan—I wonder if this is where we really shouted for joy. 

If Jesus had been chosen from the very beginning, we would have known about it in our premortal schooling. Thus, we watched Him, and knew Him—for millions of years. We knew of His love for us and that we could trust in Him, because of his perfect obedience, before we met in the grand council. Bruce R. McConkie taught,

“We do not now know, nor can the mortal mind discern, how all things came to be. We have the divine promise that if we are faithful in all things, the day will come when we shall know ‘all things’ and ‘comprehend even God.’” (Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p10).

Not all were excited about the prospect of chance, and potential for failure. Our spirit brother, Lucifer, opposed the Father’s plan and presented one of his own. We read from the Book of Moses,

“And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: …Satan…came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor.

“But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.

“Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man…; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;

“And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice” (Moses 4:1-4).

In the Book of Revelation we read about the further outcome of this opposition and rebellion.

“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

“And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him….

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death” (Revelation 12:7-9, 11).

I find it interesting that the Lord cast Satan out by the power of the Savior, and we overcame Lucifer by the blood of the Lamb—by the Atonement of Jesus Christ that would not be shed for thousands of years! 

Jesus Christ was chosen before the foundation of this world to be the Redeemer and Savior of mankind. He was ever faithful in heaven, ever faithful throughout mortality, and continues ever faithful even now. Through Him, the power of the Atonement was used to battle Satan before we came to earth, and it is the same power that will win the battle here.

Fast-forward a few thousand years, to the concluding events in our Savior’s mortal life. I love the way Tad R. Callister expressed the infinite power that comes from the love of our Savior:

“When [Jesus] entered the Garden [of Gethsemane], he was at his ‘best.’ An angel came to his side with the express mission of ‘strengthening him.’ But now, while stretched out upon the cross, his physical and emotional reservoirs were rapidly dissipating. His life-giving substance had already ebbed from every pore. He had been scourged, spat upon, and smitten. The sleepless hours were taking their toll on his temporal frame….

“One wonders how he could have any resistance left, any will to fight back, any reservoir of strength to overcome, any more love to give. He was walking the fine line that separates death from life, consciousness from unconsciousness. From Satan’s perspective, the time of vulnerability was here.

“[quoting Frederic Farrar] This was the tempter’s moment. The whole period had been one of moral and spiritual tension. During such high hours of excitement men will sustain, without succumbing, an almost incredible amount of labor, and soldiers will fight through a long day’s battle unconscious or oblivious of their wounds. But when the enthusiasm is spent, when the exultation dies away, when the fire burns low, when Nature, weary and overstrained, reasserts her rights—in a word, when a mighty reaction has begun, which leaves the man suffering spiritless, exhausted—then is the hour of extreme danger…It was at such a moment that the great battle of our Lord against the powers of evil was fought and won [end quotation].

“This was Satan’s last chance, his final desperate hope to frustrate the redemptive plan. It was now or never. There was no angel to strengthen the Holy One, no sustaining influence of the Father. Surely Satan liked the odds….

“This was the showdown: Satan, accompanied perhaps by his legions of nefarious forces, against the Savior in all his compelling loneliness—the Savior in his weakened, almost lifeless condition battling a universal accumulation of suffering. Satan’s timing was impeccable. The Father’s healing light was being withdrawn; the torturous forces of man’s most heinous form of death were pecking; and nature was about to refold in seismic language.…This was the crisis moment on the cross, the moment the Savior’s pain was most intense and his vulnerability most acute; but Milton was right: ‘Heavenly love shall outdo hellish hate’” (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p136-138)

Our Beloved Savior at His weakest, was ever more powerful that Satan and his minions at their strongest—and still is. 

One may ask, can we really come to know Jesus Christ? Can we truly come to know of His great love, and sacrifice for us? Bruce R. McConkie stated, "The answer: Yes and no....Yes, if the spiritual laws by which he may be found are obeyed; no, in all other circumstances" (Bruce R. McConkie, The Premortal Messiah, p14).

Brad R. Wilcox taught, 

“Christ asks us to show faith in Him, repent, make and keep covenants, receive the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. By complying, we are not paying the demands of justice—not even the smallest part. Instead, we are showing appreciation for what Jesus Christ did by using it to live a life like His. Justice requires immediate perfection or a punishment when we fall short. Because Jesus took that punishment, He can offer us the chance for ultimate perfection and help us reach that goal. He can forgive what justice never could, and He can turn to us now with His own set of requirements” (link to talk).

Jesus Christ was chosen from before the foundation of the world to be our Savior and Redeemer. He has shown His love to us in everything He has ever done, and will continue to show it in everything He ever will do. Our quest in life is to live in a way that we can come to know Him, come to know the power of His Atonement, and become who He can help us become. He, who created the heaven and earth upon which we stand, is fighting every minute of every hour of every day for us. He will ever fight for us. All we need to do is to trust in Him, and accept His Atonement, through our obedience to His laws and commandments. The way has long been established and all we need to do is to walk the path to get there. 

Willing Obedience

When Jesus Christ lived on the earth He was perfect: perfect in His actions, perfect in His love, perfect in His teachings, perfect in His willingness to serve His Father. 

He was willing to be baptized to show obedience, 

“Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

“But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

“And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness” (Matthew 3:13-15).

He was willing to submit to all the will of His Father, even when it was seemingly unbearable. 

“And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Matthew 26:39).

I think He must have had an attitude of obedience, rather than convenience; an attitude of keeping His covenants, no matter what the cost. He must have decided that He would obey, and didn’t even entertain thoughts of whether He wanted to do something or not.

He was perfectly willing, and perfectly powerful. I have been wondering if the two are connected. What power is there in our willingness? Willingness to drop everything and follow Him (Matthew 4:20, 22), to take His name upon us (Doctrine & Covenants 20:77), to submit to His will (Mosiah 3:19), to stand as His witness (Mosiah 18:9), to flee temptation (Genesis 39:12), to give up our sins (Alma 22:18), to repent (3 Nephi 30:2), to be baptized to show our commitment to Him (Mosiah 18:10), to do as we have been commanded (1 Nephi 5:20), to take the Holy Spirit as our guide (Doctrine & Covenants 45:57), and to be willing to  sacrifice in order to keep our covenants (Doctrine & Covenants 97:8)?

It is interesting to see the results of the above examples and the promises associated with them—promises that give us power to overcome our weaknesses. We know that the spirit is willing and the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41), but we each have the ability to choose for ourselves whether we will serve God or mammon (Luke 16:13). James E. Talmage taught,

“[We] were endowed with the powers of agency or choice while yet but spirits; and the divine plan provided that [we] be free-born in the flesh, heirs to the inalienable birthright of liberty to choose and to act for [our]selves in mortality. It is undeniably essential to the eternal progression of God’s children that they be subjected to the influences of both good and evil, that they will be tried and tested and proved withal, ‘to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them.’ Free agency is an indispensable element of such a test.

“The Eternal Father well understood the diverse natures and varied capacities of His spirit-offspring…that in the school of life some of His children would succeed and others would fail; some would be faithful, others false; some would choose good, others the evil….He saw that His commandments would be disobeyed and His law violated; and that men, shut out from His presence and left to themselves, would sink rather than rise, would retrogress rather than advance, and would be lost to the heavens” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p16).

The spirit indeed is willing, and the flesh is weak. We will be tempted, tried, and tested individually, and one of the great challenges of this life is to learn to use our agency to overcome the temptations and desires of the flesh.

We know that without the Atonement of Jesus Christ our soul would be lost forever. Lehi taught that,“all mankind were in a lost and in a fallen state, and ever would be save they should rely on this Redeemer” (1 Nephi 10:6). Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we have been “bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20). He has paid our debt to Justice, and we now owe our debt to Him. He it is that will make the rules. He it is that will set the terms. It is our decision whether we are willing to abide by His rules, or follow our own way.

When Jesus was walking by the sea of Galilee,

“[He] saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:18-19).

He was asking them to leave their livelihood, their way of life, everything they knew, and follow a higher road. This was a great turning point in their lives. The question is, were they prepared for the call? When the Lord needed them, were they ready to act?

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland spoke of the need that each of us has to be prepared in these last days for when the Lord calls us.

“In the most difficult and discouraging days of World War II, Winston Churchill said to the people of England: ‘To every man there comes … that special moment when he is figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a special thing unique to him and fitted to his talent. What a tragedy if that moment finds him unprepared or unqualified for the work which would be his finest hour.’

“In an even more serious kind of spiritual warfare…the day may come—indeed, I am certain will come—when in an unexpected circumstance or a time of critical need, lightning will strike, so to speak, and the future will be in your hands. Be ready when that day comes” (link to talk).

Are we prepared to turn our lives over to the Lord? Are we prepared to “immediately”  (see Matthew 4:22) leave whatever worldly nets are entangling us in order to follow the Lord?  If not, what is standing in our way?

In thinking about my own willingness to be perfectly obedient to the Lord’s will I have realized that I have a little bit of willing, but also unwilling, tendencies within me.

Unwillingness to abide by the laws the Lord has set reminds me of Lucifer, and the pre-mortal council in heaven. Our Father in Heaven presented a plan whereby all men could come to earth, receive a body, and progress eternally. However, because of our agency, there would be a risk that some of us would not return. If we followed God’s laws and relied on the Atonement of Jesus Christ we could be saved.

Lucifer was unwilling to follow our Heavenly Father’s plan. He wanted to create a plan of his own choosing; doing things in his own way, and receive the glory. I look at my life and wonder if there are things I am doing in my own way, without counseling with the Lord. Am I willing to set aside my own priorities and projects to do the will of the Lord? Am I willing to humble myself and obey, even when it is hard or inconvenient? Elder Richard G. Scott gave an example of setting our priorities. His example is specific to scripture study, but can be applied to many, many other things including (but certainly not limited to): temple attendance, honesty, personal prayer, family home evening, integrity, missionary work, etc.

“[S]tudy the word of God in the scriptures and the words of the living prophets….Don’t yield to Satan’s lie that you don’t have time to study the scriptures. Choose to take time to study them. Feasting on the word of God each day is more important than sleep, school, work, television shows, video games, or social media. You may need to reorganize your priorities to provide time for the study of the word of God. If so, do it!” (link to talk).

There are other times when I am willing to do something—my heart is in the right place—but I am waiting to be asked, or waiting for someone else to take the first step, so that I can follow. I don’t think this is what the Lord had in mind when He speaks of a willing heart and willing mind.

It is good to be willing, but even better to act. We have been placed on this earth to see if we will choose to do as we have been commanded (see Abraham 3:25). Thus, a critical step to willingness, in my opinion, is the willingness to act in obedience when no one is asking us to do it. Sometimes we are left to our own judgement to see if we will do what we know we are supposed to do.

An example of this can be found in the New Testament. We read that Jesus went into the wilderness and was tempted of the devil. I find the wording in the inspired version to be very telling of how things sometimes are in our own life.

“And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, and had communed with God, he was afterwards an hungered, and was left to be tempted of the devil” (Matthew 4:2 JST, emphasis added).

Just as the Savior was left to Himself to be tried and tested we are sometimes left on our own to see how we will respond, and how we will use our agency. We can find home in remembering that if we follow the plan the Lord has outlined we will not be tempted above that which we are able to handle; and a way will be provided for us to escape enough to bear it (1 Corinthians 10:13). This doesn’t mean we won’t have hard times, or that the really hard stuff will go away. I think this means that the Lord will test us to our limits, and if we’re at a breaking point (or even before our breaking point) we can turn to Him to find relief. It is through the Atonement of His Son that we can strength to endure the hard times.

Jesus did the will of Whom He was sent. He, “subjected the flesh to the will of the Father” (Mosiah 15:2). To subject something means “to bring under domination, control, or influence” (link to definition). It was through His perfect obedience that He was able to gain control over His flesh—or worldly appetites and desires.

The Lord wants a willing heart and mind. President Boyd K. Packer taught that “Your body really is the instrument of your mind and the foundation of your character” (link to talk). We are here on this earth to learn to control our physical body in order to do the works of the Father, and we are able to do it by learning to control our mind.

When the Savior visited the Nephites, after his crucifixion, they had been observing the Law of Moses. He gave them a higher law to observe. Rather than merely doing (or not doing) certain things, they were asked to control their thoughts. Some examples include: 

“Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time…that thou shalt not kill…

“But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of his judgment….

“Behold, it is written by them of old time, that thou shalt not commit adultery;

“But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman, to lust after her, hath committed adultery already in his heart….

“And behold, it is written, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth;

“But I say unto you, that…whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also” (3 Nephi 12:21-22, 27-28, 38-39).

What the Lord asks of us is hard, because it is in opposition to the will of the flesh. But, it is the path we are required to follow if we want to become like He is. It is hard to overcome our physical nature, but with the help of our Savior it is possible. “We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel” (Articles of Faith 1:3). It is our willing obedience to His commandments and the covenants we make that will make all the difference.

The greatest commandment is to love God (see Mark 12:30). Are we willing to “lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better” (Doctrine & Covenants 25:10)? Are we willing to seek to know His will, and to do it? James E. Talmage taught that the Savior’s “humility and willingness [is what] rendered Him acceptable to the Father” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p20). We can likewise be acceptable to the Father through our humility and willing obedience. 

The Lord has a plan for us, and as we are willing to obey Him we will be guided along our individual path. Alma taught,

“For behold, it is as easy to give heed to the word of Christ, which will point to you a straight course to eternal bliss, as it was for our fathers to give heed to this compass, which would point unto them a straight course to the promised land” (Alma 37:44).

Rosemary M. Wixom taught,

“That is the key, and it is really quite simple: ‘I will follow God’s plan for me.’ And we do it by holding fast to His word, with His love, and through our prayers to Him while simply living life.

“Brigham Young said, ‘Live so that the spirit of our religion [lives] within us.’ We are a making-and-keeping-covenants people, and nothing better shapes us than the sacred covenants we make to the Lord. We live these covenants when we follow His plan, and we come to know who we really are….

“Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin said: ‘We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won’t, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming’” (link to talk).

As we live obediently to the laws, ordinance, and covenants we have made we can have the Holy Spirit by our side, we can be led through the storms and trials of life, and become who the Lord knows we can become. 

We must be the one to take the first step, and then continue moving forward of our own free will and choice. Then if we choose to continue on the path, the spirit can lead us and guide us to eternal glory with our Father in Heaven and our Savior, Jesus Christ. But, if we were unwilling, “[we] shall return again to [our] own place, to enjoy that which [we] are willing to receive, because [we] were not willing to enjoy that which [we] might have received” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:32) through our obedience.

Oh the glories that await! All that we can imagine—and more—is possible, if we are willing to act in obedience to the plan of our great God. Such was (and is) the life of our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ; an example we can surely follow.

Jesus Christ: Law-giver

In the October 2014 General Conference I was struck by something in President Boyd K. Packer’s talk. He spoke of one subject in the Topical Guide, “18 pages, very fine print, single-spaced, listing references to the subject of ‘Jesus Christ.’ It is one of the most comprehensive compilations of scriptural references on the subject of the Savior that has ever been assembled in the history of the world” (link to talk). This year we are studying the New Testament in Sunday School. I also have a personal goal to read the book Jesus the Christ, by James E. Talmage (something I have started several times, but never completed). For my blog this year I would like to draw upon all of these (and other) resources and delve more into the life of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

—————

Prior to the creation of this world we (all individuals past, present, and future to live on this earth) lived with our Father in Heaven. Jesus Christ progressed in this pre mortal realm to a state of godhood. Abraham recorded, “And there stood one among them that was like unto God” (Abraham 3:24). Thinking of the many billions of spirit children that were in the pre mortal world, it is possible that there was one, and seems to be only one, that attained godhood through completely perfect obedience from the beginning. 

All of us had the same laws to follow, and each of us had our own agency to choose our path. Tad R. Callister stated,

“Alma described a pre mortal spirit as ‘being left to choose good or evil’, and thus possessing the power to sin….One-third of the pre mortal spirits committed such a serious sin in giving allegiance to Lucifer that they were cast out from the presence of God….This third part of the heavenly hosts chose Satan over God ‘because of their agency’. The two-thirds that remained were not all equal in their allegiance and obedience to God. At their spiritual birth they were ‘on the same standing with their brethren’, but through the laws of agency each spirit advanced at his own rate so that only some became ‘noble and great ones’.

“All premortal spirits commenced their spirit sojourn innocent (i.e., meaning free from sin), but all such spirits lost their innocence through individual sin….

“Such concepts as agency, expulsion, and foreordination, all of which were present in the pre mortal life, imply a choice and opportunity to obey or to sin” (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p76-77).

Jesus Christ was the only perfect one in this pre mortal state, and was “chosen and ordained [as] the one and only Savior and Redeemer of the human race” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p6). In Moses we read that Jesus Christ was and is “the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men” (Moses 6:52). 

There is and was no other way.

Our Savior reached godhood through His unwavering obedience to the laws of God. Tad R. Callister shed a little insight into the concept of laws which I found quite interesting.

“The scriptures frequently refer to ‘justice’ and the demand for its satisfaction. What, then, is justice, and who requires it?…[W]ho determines what justice is?...

“There are certain laws of the universe that are immutable, that are without beginning of days or end of years. They are not created by an intelligent being, nor are they the product of moral thought, rather they are eternal, co-existent realities with the intelligences of the universe. These laws are immutable in that they cannot be altered or modified in any form….

“Certain of these immutable laws affect the physical or natural world….

“In and of themselves, the laws of the physical or natural world seem to have no moral implications. They do not affect our spiritual growth. we cannot sin by breaking these laws, because it is not possible to break them. We would not drop a ball from a tower and deduce, ‘This ball will always fall in this way, because the laws of gravity are just.’ Justice and mercy have no meaning in these circumstances; fairness or rightness are not issues when it comes to the physical, natural laws; they do not allow for obedience by choice, but rather require uncompromising, involuntary compliance” (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p300-301).

There are laws that we do not have a choice in obeying, as he indicated above. But, there are  other laws that we have within us the full control to obey or disobey. He continues,

“There appear to be other immutable laws in the universe, however, that offer both a choice and a consequence, and hence, in this sense, they are spiritual laws. These spiritual laws governs all intelligent beings in the universe—and also govern their progress. For these purposes, progress means an increase in eternal power….

“The Savior observed every spiritual law with undeviating exactness. Apparently because of his complacence with each one, he received power upon power until he acquired the attributes of God, even in pre mortal times….His godhood thus seemed to result not from a creation of these laws, but rather from compliance with them. But what of the rest of us, who do not comply with each and every immutable law? Could we not just try and try and try again until we finally got it right, and then become gods, even though it might be on a delayed timetable? The answer is no. Evidently these immutable spiritual laws offer no leniency or mercy or second chances. If we do not comply, we have lost forever that opportunity for increased power that naturally flows from compliance” (ibid., p 301-302).

There must have come a time in His pre-mortal life when the Savior realized that none of His myriad spirit siblings would be able to progress to godhood with Him—for we had all sinned. I wonder if this was the beginning of the inception of the Plan in His mind. Out of His love for us He must have felt a desire to do something to help—He must have wanted to find a way to help us progress. 

Through his perfect obedience he was not subject to the demands of justice, and therefore “having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; [and at a later day breaking] the bands of death, [taking] upon himself [our] iniquity and [our] transgressions, having redeemed [us], and satisfied the demands of justice” (Mosiah 15:9) He would give His life to save ours. 

Through His never-ending obedience He is able to stand between us and the demands of justice. He then becomes our lawgiver, and can extend His arms of mercy if we will comply with the laws and demands He sets. 

“And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles [us] in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption” (Alma 34:16).

Bruce R. McConkie taught,

“We know that the plan of salvation is always and everlastingly the same; that obedience to the same laws always brings the same reward; that the gospel laws have not changed from the day of Adam to the present; and that always and everlastingly all things pertaining to salvation center in Christ” (Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p 4-5).

Everyone who has ever lived, or ever will live, on this earth must comply with these laws if they want to return to live with our Fatehr in Heaven again. Elder McConkie continued, “and we…know that these same laws and doctrines will guide us, as they guided the saints of old, to that eternal life which we and they so devoutly desire” (ibid., p5).

As we continue on our journey of life we can comply with the eternal laws of God, and reap eternal blessings, or we can choose our own path, and receive the consequences of our choices. The only sure way to find peace and happiness in the eternities, is to follow the plan outlined by the Savior.

“But learn that he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (Doctrine & Covenants 59:23).

President J. Reuben Clark, Jr. expressed his sentiments this way,

“The mystery of it all is beyond me. I can only take the record as it stands, and that record tells me that if I obey his commandments, if I live as he would have me live, then I shall fulfill and reach the destiny which he prescribed for me, a destiny of eternal progression, a destiny of a life in his presence, so far as my work there will permit, a destiny that knows no limit to the power which I may receive if I live for it” (J. Reuben Clark, Jr, Behold the Lamb of God, as quoted in “The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles”, p13)

Somehow by living the laws of God, in this ever increasingly wicked world, we will be blessed in the eternities. And it is only through the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ that this is possible. Tad R. Callister said,

“There are a number of spiritual truths that must seem like irreconcilable ironies to the secular world—humility breeds strength, faith nurtures vision, and obedience brings freedom. There is a simple test, however, by which we can learn the veracity of those spiritual precepts for ourselves. The Lord revealed it. ‘If any many will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself’ (John 7:17). Simply put, if we are obedient to God’s will, we will experience newfound freedoms in our life; if we are disobedient, freedom will be the star we can never reach” (Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p259).

Perhaps it would be well for all of us, at the beginning of this new year, to try again to be obedient to His laws; to try a little hard to repent a little sooner; to try to be kinder and more Christlike; to try to remember Him more often. There is no limit to His mercy. There is no limit to the love He extends to each of us. As we turn our lives over to Him and choose obedience to His laws, we will find no limit to our eternal joy.