The Atonement of Christ

Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; 

being filled with compassion towards the children of men; 

standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, 

taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, 

having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice. 

-- Mosiah 15:9

This week in class we've made it to the new testament entries of the atonement of Christ. There are so many different aspects to the atonement and I would love to share everything that I've been studying and learning, however, for this entry I'm going to keep it short and sweet. 

To start off, I chose above painting (by Liz Lemon, I'm really beginning to love  and favor her artwork, it's new to me) because I find it captures the side of Christ in the Garden that not many people realize or choose to recognize. Personally, when I relate to my Savior and go to Him in times of need and express my everlasting gratitude, it is here, like in this painting, that I imagine suffering in the Garden went for Him. This was a prayer like no other -- one where Christ is carrying everything on his shoulders -- all the sins and awful consequences of it, and of guilt, depression, hopelessness, anger, grief, shame, loss, anxiety, hatred -- He carries this all and he has never felt any of it before, and here He is, praying to the Father, with not just the sadness or guilt you've felt at your worst, but every one else's emotions and physical pain as well. Christ literally knows exactly what is like to be pounded by temptation, to feel the greatest loss, to feel like you are in the deepest of despairs, to feel lost and lonely, etc.  And why? So that we would not have to suffer those pains throughout all of time. So that we could one day return to our Father in Heaven and have constant joy and rejoicing -- not continual pain and suffering, cut off from the presence of the Lord. So Christ interceded, he became our Advocate to the Father (D&C 45:3-5), and he broke the bonds of death, and he fulfilled justice while extending mercy. He doesn't want us to suffer, so as part of the Plan, Christ came to redeem our promised blessings and eternal potential and everlasting joy. 

I want to bear my testimony that I know Christ is our Lord and Redeemer--that through Him, we can one day return to our loving Father in Heaven. It is through Christ that we can have eternal life and joy, which is to dwell with our Heavenly Father and families throughout the eternities. I know that Christ understands everything that we go through in this mortal experience and He will never leave our sides. His act of atonement provides us with a divine protection, a way like no other in which we can infinitely look towards light and joy and have the promised blessing of peace in the Lord's presence. One of the greatest things that brings the spirit to my heart is thinking of my Savior, standing in front of me as I fall to the ground in tears, begging for compassion and mercy and hope and peace--and then to His arm extended to me, as he pulls me into an embrace, and He looks at me with knowing eyes, for he is ready and willing to immediately plead my cause before the Lord and take upon my sins and mistakes and weaknesses, knowing that I've tried to do my best as a faithful servant and follow Him. He ensures that my desires for life everlasting are fulfilled, as He and the Father only want for our happiness and great return. 

And I hope you can feel that too. ♥

That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 

--Titus 3:7