Day 154- Atonement Insights

"I repeat, save for the exception of the very few who defect to perdition, there is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no apostasy, no crime exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness. That is the promise of the atonement of Christ" (Boyd K. Packer, Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 20).

Day 153- Atonement Insights

"The reality of our dependence upon Jesus Christ for the attainment of our goals of immortality and eternal life should dominate every teaching and every testimony and every action and every soul touched by the light of the restored gospel. If we teach every other subject and principle with perfection and fall short of this one, we have failed our most important mission."
 ~ Dallin H. Oaks, "Sins, Crimes, and Atonement" [address to religious educators, 7 Feb 1992]


I know when I grasp the atonement and come unto Christ through repentance and obedience, Jesus Christ can do much more with my life than I can do on my own.

Day 152- Atonement Insight

"Just as a man does not really desire food until he is hungry, so he does not desire the salvation of Christ until he knows why he needs Christ.... No one adequately and properly knows why he needs Christ until he understands and accepts the doctrine of the Fall and its effect upon all mankind. And no other book in the world explains this vital doctrine nearly as well as the Book of Mormon."
~ Ezra Taft Benson, CR April 1987, p.106

As I was in Zions National Park this week, I was able to share my brief testimony of the Book of Mormon with a group of teenagers. I felt the spirit and wished I had more time share about the infinite atonement. However, I was grateful that I was able to bear witness of the Book of Mormon and how God loves all of his children and we will receive more knowledge as we seek it.

Day 151- Atonement Insight

Alma 12:15, "But this cannot be; we must come forth and stand before him in his glory, and in his power, and in his might, majesty, and dominion, and acknowledge to our everlasting ^ashame that all his ^bjudgments are just; that he is just in all his works, and that he is merciful unto the children of men, and that he has all power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet for repentance."

As I was reading this scripture, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the magnitude of the atonement. The atonement encompasses all mankind. It also makes me sad when people don't choose to utilize the power of the atonement. When we choose to utilize the atonement, miracles can happen in our lives.

Day 150- Atonement Insight

According to Brent L. Top whom describes six characteristics of those who have repented. First, you have become born of the spirit, and have received a remission of sins; these features are particularly valuable in recognizing whether the atonement has been effective in one's life. In the context of this discussion about how we can recognize whether we have received a remission of sins or have been born of the spirit, Top states: "This condition does not mean that we never again succumb to temptation, but it does mean that sinfulness becomes repugnant to us and that we desire righteousness and seek to do good".

Day 149-Atonement Insights

Day 148-Atonement Insights

Spiritual help is available through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Such a promise can be especially poignant for those caught in a trap of obsessive online gaming. Hope in the Atonement, coupled with the guidance of the Holy Ghost and counsel from inspired leaders, will help individuals as they seek to apply principles of balance and move toward a life—an actual one and not merely a virtual one—that is rich and full.

http://lds.org/ensign/2009/08/just-a-game?lang=eng

Atonement can be applied to every challenge and weakness in life.

Day 147-Atonement Insights

Jesus Wants to Fully Heal Us

"Jesus suffered deeply because He loves us deeply! He wants us to repent and be converted so that He can fully heal us.

"When sore trials come upon us (see "Did You Think to Pray?" Hymns, no. 140, verse 3), it's time to deepen our faith in God, to work hard, and to serve others. Then He will heal our broken hearts. He will bestow upon us personal peace and comfort. Those great gifts will not be destroyed, even by death."

Russell M. Nelson, "Jesus Christ—the Master Healer," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 87

Topics: Adversity, Atonement

Day 146-Atonement Insights

The Gospel Will Save the Whole Human Family.

"This Gospel will save the whole human family; the blood of Jesus will atone for our sins, if we accept the terms he has laid down; but we must accept those terms or else it will avail nothing in our behalf."

Brigham Young, Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young [1997], 39

Topics: Atonement

Day 145-Atonement Insights

Elder Cecil Samuelson Jr also stated, "His Atonement does indeed cover the world and all people from the beginning to the end. Let us not forget, however, that in its comprehensiveness and completeness it is also intensely personal and uniquely crafted to fit perfectly and address perfectly each of our own individual circumstances. The Father and the Son know each of us better than we know ourselves and have prepared an Atonement for us that is fully congruent with our needs, challenges, and possibilities."

It is interesting to think how the Atonement is individually constructed for each of us. We vary in needs allowing the Atonement to encompass all degrees and levels of circumstances and challenges. It is amazing to me how hand crafted the Atonement is in each of our own lives.

Day 144-Atonement Insights

Elder Cecil Samuelson Jr. states, "It is through the grace of Christ that we are resurrected, and it is His grace, love, and Atonement that help us accomplish the good works and make the necessary progress that otherwise would be impossible if we were left solely to our own capacities and resources." We cannot progress through this life solely on our own efforts and saved by Grace after all we can do. We can progress and accomplish more with Christ at the Helm.

Day 143-Atonement Insights

Perhaps the most important thing we must emphasize in our attempt to “grow up” spiritually and come unto Christ is His infinite Atonement. President Howard W. Hunter explained that spiritual maturity is a direct result of understanding and applying the Atonement: “Spiritual maturity comes when we understand the Atonement. . . . When we come to the point where we understand the atoning sacrifice of the Master, we are approaching a spiritual maturity. I don’t think spiritual maturity ever comes to us until we understand the true significance of the atoning sacrifice of the Master by which he gave his life that we might have life everlasting. When we understand the principle, we realize this is the greatest of love—that the Master laid down his life for us, that the grave will not be the end, but that we will live again.” When we realize the priceless gift of love that the Savior offered through His Atonement, we experience a “mighty change” of heart (see Alma 5:12).

Day 142-Atonement Insights

President Kimball’s famous statement on scripture study emphasizes this important truth: “I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away. If I immerse myself in the scriptures the distance narrows and the spirituality returns.”

Day 141-Atonement Insights

As Elder Oaks mentioned, the ultimate motivation leading to righteousness is a pure love of Christ. Though we clearly must continue to emphasize righteous behavior, the best way to achieve our true potential is by developing a pure love for and faith in God. By focusing on God’s word and the Atonement of Jesus Christ, each of us will develop this pure love for and faith in God.

Day 140-Atonement Insights

Elder David A. Bednar has taught: “The issue is not going to church; rather, the issue is worshipping and renewing covenants as we attend church. The issue is not going to or through the temple; rather, the issue is having in our hearts the spirit, the covenants, and the ordinances of the Lord’s house. The issue is not going on a mission; rather, the issue is becoming a missionary and serving throughout our entire life with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength.”

Obedience to the laws of the gospel for the right reason will help us effectively apply the atonement in our lives and increase our spiritual capacity.

Day 139-Atonement Insights

Elder Richard G. Scott taught: “We are here on earth to gain experience we can obtain in no other way. We are given the opportunity to grow, to develop, and to gain spiritual maturity. To do that, we must learn to apply truth.”

As we apply the atonement on a daily basis, we can gain spiritual maturity as we apply this doctrine in our lives.

Day 138-Atonement Insights

Doctrine Changes Behavior Boyd K. Packer

True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the Gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior. Preoccupation with unworthy behavior can lead to unworthy behavior. That is why we stress so forcefully the study of the doctrines of the Gospel. (Boyd K. Packer, CR, Oct. 1986, p. 20)

Day 137-Atonement Insights

Michael Goodman discussed how Laman and Lemuel had a difficult time with their relationship to God and understanding the atonement. He stated "according to the scriptural record, Laman and Lemuel never denied the reality of God. Unlike most mortals, they actually had angelic evidence of His existence. However, “they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them” (1 Nephi 2:12). They failed to understand the nature of their relationship with God and the nature of this probationary state. So even though God was a reality to Laman and Lemuel, he was largely irrelevant to them. They never drew upon His power to help them overcome their fallen state. They never progressed from a basic knowledge that God exists to having living faith in Him."

Day 136-Atonement Insights

Hugh Nibley wrote: “We cannot enjoy optional obedience to the law of God, or place our own limits on the law of sacrifice, or mitigate the charges of righteous conduct connected with the law of the gospel. We cannot be willing to sacrifice only that which is convenient to part with, and then expect a reward. The Atonement is everything; it is not to be had ‘on the cheap."

We must sacrifice to obtain the rewards of the atonement. We cannot maintain a relationship with God without sacrifice even if at times it is not convenient or comfortable. We must work ardently to achieve the blessings that God has for us.

Day 135-Atonement Insights

Deliverance: Only in God

“Are you struggling with some sin or weakness? It can be something as simple as not having the willpower to rise in the morning early enough to have time for scripture study and prayer. It can be something so powerful, such as Internet pornography or lack of moral self-control, that you feel you have been pulled down into an abyss and there is no hope for you. Do you find yourself hating what you are doing but not able to find the willpower to turn away from it? Then reach out and humble yourself. The Lord’s enabling power is sufficient to change your heart, to turn your life, to purge your soul. But you must make the first move, which is to humble yourself and realize that only in God can you find deliverance.”

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “Be Strong in the Lord,” Ensign, July 2004, 12.