2 Nephi 9:20-25

This morning I was thinking that today is the quiet day of Holy Week. Christ rode triumphantly into Jerusalem. He had the Last Supper with his disciples, teaching them one last time.

The atonement began later that evening. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He suffered as no human could, taking upon Himself the all the sins of mankind. The words of Luke...

39 ¶ And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.

40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Luke 22:39-44 (Emphasis mine)

He knew what was to come.  He prayed to his Father, asking that He not have to do this.  But, we see the entire key to the atonement - "not my will, but thine be done."  The sacrifice had to be voluntary.  Only He could complete the plan of salvation.  Only through Him could we be united with God again someday.  Only through Him would death be conquered, and only through Him would evil be defeated.  The  willing Son went forward, suffering so that "his sweat was as it were great drops of blood."  An angel strengthened Him.

After this suffering, He was betrayed by his disciple.  He suffered further; He went through the mockery of a trial, was condemned and hung on a cross among thieves.  He was alone. As He was dying, He was mocked. There was no angel strengthening Him this time.  He had to do it alone.  At one point he cried:

46  And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?  that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Matthew 27:46 (Emphasis mine)

Finally, the time arrived.  It was over,  He had won.  He proclaimed His victory with the cry "... It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost."  (John 19:30)

His mission was almost fulfilled.  Through His voluntary suffering in Gethsemane and willingness to give up His life (which as the Son of God He could have easily saved), we could now return to be with our Father and Christ through the eternities.

One finally victory was still to be achieved.  His body was still in the grave.  He had not won the final victory over death.  Tomorrow, Easter Sunday, mercy will meet the demands of justice.  Evil has lost and can never keep  us from being forever being cutoff from the presence of God, unless we choose to voluntarily live a life of sin.  Tomorrow we celebrate the final victory over both the first and second deaths.

Now on to the words of Jacob.

20  O how great the holiness of our God!  For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it.
21  And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam.
22  And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day.
23  And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.
24  And if they will not repent and believe in his name, and be baptized in his name, and endure to the end, they must be damned; for the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has spoken it.
25  Wherefore, he has given a law; and where there is no law given there is no punishment; and where there is no punishment there is no condemnation; and where there is no condemnation the mercies of the Holy One of Israel have claim upon them, because of the atonement; for they are delivered by the power of him.

2 Nephi 9:20-25 (Emphasis mine)

Jacob again praises God.  He reminds us that Christ would come to this world, suffer for all, "...if they will hearken unto his voice..." (v21) so we can be saved in the kingdom of God.

Once again we have the warning of the consequences of choosing poorly.  If we choose to not hearken unto His voice, we  "...must be damned..."  (v24)  The choice is ours and ours alone.  We cannot be forced to be good or evil.  We cannot be forced to "...hearken unto his voice..." (v21) or to ignore his voice.  We will make that choice.  That choice will have eternal consequences for us.  It is one not to be made lightly.

6  Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
7  (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

2 Corinthians 5:6-7 (Emphasis mine)

7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
8  Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1:7-9 (Emphasis Mine)

In the October 2005 General Conference, President Henry B. Eyring said... 

"So, the great test of life is to see whether we will hearken to and obey God’s commands in the midst of the storms of life. It is not to endure storms, but to choose the right while they rage. And the tragedy of life is to fail in that test and so fail to qualify to return in glory to our heavenly home..It will take unshakable faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to choose the way to eternal life. It is by using that faith we can know the will of God. It is by acting on that faith we build the strength to do the will of God. And it is by exercising that faith in Jesus Christ that we can resist temptation and gain forgiveness through the Atonement.  We will need to have developed and nurtured faith in Jesus Christ long before Satan hits us, as he will, with doubts and appeals to our carnal desires and with lying voices saying that good is bad and that there is no sin. Those spiritual storms are already raging. We can expect that they will worsen until the Savior returns.  However much faith to obey God we now have, we will need to strengthen it continually and keep it refreshed constantly. We can do that by deciding now to be more quick to obey and more determined to endure. Learning to start early and to be steady are the keys to spiritual preparation. Procrastination and inconsistency are its mortal enemies." (Emphasis mine)

In the October 2000 General Conference Session, Elder Richard  G. Scott said...

"Why have our Father and His Son commanded us to repent? Because they love us. They know all of us will violate eternal laws. Whether they be small or large, justice requires that every broken law be satisfied to retain the promise of joy in this life and the privilege of returning to Father in Heaven. If not satisfied, in the Day of Judgment justice will cause that we be cast out of the presence of God to be under the control of Satan. It is our Master and His redeeming act that make it possible for us to avoid such condemnation. It is done through faith in Jesus Christ, obedience to His commandments, and enduring in righteousness to the end.  Are you taking full advantage of the redeeming power of repentance in your life so that you can have greater peace and joy? Feelings of turmoil and despondency often signal a need for repentance. Also the lack of the spiritual direction you seek in your life could result from broken laws. If needed, full repentance will put your life together. It will solve all of the complex spiritual pains that come from transgression. But in this life it cannot remedy some of the physical consequences that can occur from serious sin. Be wise and consistently live well within the boundaries of righteousness defined by the Lord."  (Emphasis mine)

Let us use this sacred and special weekend to renew our commitment to Christ.  Let us all strengthen our faith, to express our gratitude for His great and voluntary sacrifice that makes it so that we can return to our Father's and His presence again and remain there for all eternity.