Day 71-Atonement Insights

Change of Heart

"The gospel of Jesus Christ encompasses much more than avoiding, overcoming, and being cleansed from sin and the bad influences in our lives; it also essentially entails doing good, being good, and becoming better. Repenting of our sins and seeking forgiveness are spiritually necessary, and we must always do so. But remission of sin is not the only or even the ultimate purpose of the gospel. To have our hearts changed by the Holy Spirit such that 'we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually' (Mosiah 5:2), as did King Benjamin's people, is the covenant responsibility we have accepted. This mighty change is not simply the result of working harder or developing greater individual discipline. Rather, it is the consequence of a fundamental change in our desires, our motives, and our natures made possible through the Atonement of Christ the Lord. Our spiritual purpose is to overcome both sin and the desire to sin, both the taint and the tyranny of sin."

David A. Bednar, "Clean Hands and a Pure Heart," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 81-82

Day 70-Atonement Insights

Elder Faust stated, "I am profoundly grateful for the principle of saving grace. Many people think they need only confess that Jesus is the Christ and then they are saved by grace alone. We cannot be saved by grace alone, “for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” Grace is an interesting principle. Grace has no bearinguntil we have done all we can.

Day 69-Atonement Insights

Elder Faust stated, "Understanding what we can of the Atonement and the Resurrection of Christ helps us to obtain a knowledge of Him and of His mission. Any increase in our understanding of His atoning sacrifice draws us closer to Him."

Day 68-Atonement Insights

"Each of us will taste the bitter ashes of life, from sin and neglect to sorrow and disappointment. But the atonement of Christ can lift us up in beauty from our ashes on the wings of a sure promise of immortality and eternal life. He will thus lift us up, not only at the end of life, but in each day of our lives."
--Bruce C. Hafen, "Beauty for Ashes: The Atonement of Jesus Christ, Liahona", Apr. 1997, 39

Day 67-Atonement Insights

D&C 18: 10-12

10Remember the ^aworth of ^bsouls is great in the sight of God;

11For, behold, the Lord your ^aRedeemer suffered ^bdeath in the flesh; wherefore he ^csuffered the ^dpain of all men, that all men might repent and ^ecome unto him.

12And he hath ^arisen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of ^brepentance.

Day 66- Atonement Insight

Elder Maxwell stated, "The Greek word of which repentance is the English translation “denotes a change of mind, i.e., a fresh view about God, about oneself, and about the world” (Bible Dictionary, “Repentance,” 760). This means we are to change our thoughts and then behavior until we are turned away from our sins and are aligned with God’s commandments. This change of mind means that we are actually progressing toward what Paul called “the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16). Repentance is thus a continuing process in which each of us needs to draw on the Atonement for real relief, real forgiveness, and real progress." Today, I particpated as an adult facilitator in Challenge Day with JDHS students. The program theme is "Be the Change." The program emphasizes the importance of repentance and forgiveness not in a a religious but in a secular standpoint. The concepts are the same to help people become better and change.

Day 65- Atonement Insight

"This life is not so much a time for getting and accumulating as it is a time for giving and becoming. Mortality is the battlefield upon which justice and mercy meet. But they need not meet as adversaries, for they are reconciled in the Atonement of Jesus Christ for all who wisely use Today."
--Lance B. Wickman, "Today", Ensign, May 2008, 103–5