The Great Lawgiver

  Most human beings believe in the concepts of right and wrong, and of good and evil.  Who decides though what is good and right?  Most people I have met have differing views of this concept.  For example in a college dormitory you will have some people who find it acceptable to take his roommates food without asking and others who think that it constitutes stealing and is almost unforgivable.  On a more serious note there are also those who adhere to the philosophy that murderers should be sentenced to death to protect society from it happening again and others who believe that no crime necessitates the need for the shedding of more blood.  I will not pretend to have the answers for either scenario, however we see now the need for a higher power in deciding what is wrong and what is right.

  Alma posed asked his son a profound question in the Book of Mormon, "How could he sin if there was no law?"- Alma 42:17  If good and evil exist there must be a law upon which these concepts are predicated.  Lehi also had some interesting thoughts concerning this matter, "And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God."-2 Nephi 2:13  In conclusion there is no God without a law of good and evil and inversely I would say that there is no good and evil without a God to lay down these laws.

The Power of the Atonement

  Many people have heard of Jesus Christ and his atonement.  Many people however do not realize to what extent the atonement can play in our lives.  The Book of Mormon teaches us many things concerning the atonement.  One of the first Book of Mormon prophets, Nephi teaches us the importance of the atonement plays in the forgiveness of sins, "Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered."-2 Nephi 2:7  We learn two important things from Nephi here.  First, that it is through the atonement that we are able repent of our sins.  Second, that the atonement applies to all men as long as they humble themselves before the Lord.

  There is another aspect of the atonement that many people do not realize.  Alma, another Book of Mormon prophet, taught this concerning the atonement, "And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.  And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."-Alma 7:11-12  We learn from this that the atonement is not only for those who have sinned and need to repent (which we all need at some point) but it is also for those who need comfort and guidance. 

President Boyd K. Packer gave a talk concerning this subject at a BYU devotional:



I love how he says that there is nothing in our lives that the atonement of Jesus Christ can not fix.  I have seen this in my own life and I am grateful to have such a loving father in heaven who gave us the means to return to him and for his son who gave his life for us. I leave my own testimony of the power of the atonement and that it can cause life changes in any who seek out its blessings.

What's the point?

Yesterday I had the solemn responsibility of speaking at a funeral.  The death of someone else has often been the cause for many people to ponder the meaning of life.  Why are we here?  Is there more to life then merely working all our lives and then dying?  Well I know that there is.  In the Book of Mormon, Alma teaches us "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." -Alma 34:32.  So there it is, there is probably no simpler way to put it.  Our purpose in this life is to get ready to meet God by obeying the commandments and partaking of priesthood ordinances such as baptism.  This is why the message that we have to share as missionaries is so important, it's a message of hope, that there is something more to this life and that God has a plan for us.