Mormon Bloggers

Jesus Christ: Be Still My Soul I hung up the phone after speaking with an acquaintance. His emotional and spiritual temperature seemed to change with every set of daily circumstances.  When something lent him favor, he was up and kind. He was humble when he positioned himself to see his blessings; when he forgot them, he was a different person. He dove off emotional cliffs that weren’t there. He acknowledged a miracle when he saw it and in the next breath, when an outcome wasn’t just what he expected, he was kicking and screaming. What I saw in my mind’s eye was, of all things, a fly.  I saw it buzzing all over the place, never with a secure or lasting landing place, not being anchored to something that would allow it to be still, quiet. I thought again of [Clay]: He was like that fly. I thought to myself, “He has no anchor in Christ, and is just like that fly, buzzing through life and changing colors with every event and happenstance.” I prayed for him. Peace... Read the rest of this entry »

Why is Jesus Christ called the Son of Man?  While others in the Scriptures (particularly the Old Testament) who are called “son[s] of man” (Jeremiah 49:18, Ezekiel 4:16, Psalms 8:4), the word “son” is uncapitalized.  Elder James E. Talmage, a Biblical scholar, sheds light on the answer in his renown work, Jesus the Christ.  He says, “In applying the designation to Himself, the Lord invariably uses the definite article. ‘The Son of Man’ was and is, specifically and exclusively, Jesus Christ. While as a matter of solemn certainty He was the only male human being from Adam down who was not the son of a mortal man, He used the title in a way to conclusively demonstrate that it was peculiarly and solely His own. It is plainly evident that the expression is fraught with a meaning beyond that conveyed by the words in common usage. The distinguishing appellation has been construed by many to indicate our Lord’s humble station as a mortal, and to connote that He stood... Read the rest of this entry »

Jesus went to the temple during the feast of the Tabernacles. The temple was lit by four very large candelabra and their light could be seen for a great distance. Here, he rescued the woman about to be stoned for adultery and then  proclaimed to those who watched the event, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Darkness, in a spiritual sense, frequently refers to sin or to confusion about truth. Just as in life, the darkness can hide evil or distort what is real, in the spiritual world, it can distort truth and make it difficult to see or understand truth. However, God created both day and night, and He does not expect us to live our lives in darkness. He wants us to live out our lives in the light, and that light comes from the Savior. Jesus Christ came to earth to fulfill prophecy and to fulfill a promise He made to us before we were born; He promised to come and redeem us from our sins. Prior to this,... Read the rest of this entry »

Jesus Christ did not actually use the word grace in His earthly ministry. Only two verses reference this word in the four gospels, and these were both spoken by others. Luke tells us the grace of God was on Jesus as a child. John taught: “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ (John 1:17, King James Version of the Bible). Therefore, our understanding of the word grace comes from others. Let’s look at a few uses of the word grace in the Bible. Although these were spoken after the Savior’s death, they were spoken by His apostles. The first New Testament reference that gives real information about grace is found in Acts, chapter 15. Paul was listening to church members arguing over the issue of circumcision for gentiles. In the past, the gospel had not been taught to the gentiles, and so this was a fairly recent issue. Paul, deciding he’d heard enough or perhaps was tired of the debate, stood up and reminded them they had been instructed to teach... Read the rest of this entry »

The evening before the Lamb of God was to be crucified for the sins of the world and hours before He was betrayed, the Lord Jesus was sitting with his Apostles in a “large upper room” (Mark 14:15). It was here that He first instituted the sacrament: “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and [...]  Read More →

Jesus the Christ fulfilled the law of Moses as the great and last sacrifice. All believers before His sacrifice looked forward to Him by offering blood sacrifices which were types and shadows of the ultimate sacrifice that would later end blood sacrifices. Now, we look back to this great event by taking the emblems of His flesh and His blood.  Read More →

The atonement of Jesus Christ is the central doctrine of Christianity, and all other Christian doctrines come out of and are appendages to it.1 Not only can these other doctrines be connected back to the Savior and His Atoning Sacrifice, but if they are not, “there will be no life nor substance nor redemption in [...]  Read More →

Before I say anything else, I want to make it clear that the real answer to this question is beyond the scope of this article; indeed, it is beyond the scope of mortality and all things temporal: for “this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom [...]  Read More →

Jesus the Christ is the Son of God. He came down to earth, His footstool, and voluntarily submitted Himself as an offering for all mankind.  Read More →