Strengthened by the Atonement of Jesus Christ ~ Part One

 Good Morning or Good Afternoon or Good Evening, 

this post should take approximately three minutes to read from start to finish.

This post focuses on October 2015 General Conference talk, and it is called "Strengthened by the Atonement of Jesus Christ" by Elder Dallin H. Oaks. This post is part one, and I hope that you would be able to learn something new while you are reading this post. 

Elder Oaks has mentioned the following; "In mortality we have the certainty of death and the burden of sin. The Atonement of Jesus Christ offsets these two certainties of mortal life. But apart from death and sin, we have many other challenges as we struggle through mortality. Because of that same Atonement, our Savior can provide us the strength we need to overcome these mortal challenges. ...

I.

Most scriptural accounts of the Atonement concern the Savior’s breaking the bands of death and suffering for our sins. ... Alma described ... the Savior’s 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” (Alma 7:11; also see 2 Nephi 9:21).

Think of it! In the Savior’s Atonement, He suffered “pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind.” As President Boyd K. Packer explained: “He had no debt to pay. He had committed no wrong. Nevertheless, an accumulation of all of the guilt, the grief and sorrow, the pain and humiliation, all of the mental, emotional, and physical torments known to man - He experienced them all.”

Why did He suffer these mortal challenges “of every kind”? ... President James E. Faust taught, “Since the Savior has suffered anything and everything that we could ever feel or experience, He can help the weak to become stronger.” Our Savior experienced and suffered the fulness of all mortal challenges “according to the flesh” ...

He therefore knows our struggles, our heartaches, our temptations, and our suffering, for He willingly experienced them all as an essential part of His Atonement. And because of this, His Atonement empowers Him to succor us to give us the strength to bear it all.

"The enabling power of the ATONEMENT 
strengthens us to do and be good and to serve
beyond our own individual desire and natural
capacity." - David A. Bednar.

II.

... The Book of Mormon records His healing those “that were afflicted in any manner” (3 Nephi 17:9). ... Isaiah taught that the Messiah would bear our “griefs” and our “sorrows” (Isaiah 53:4). 

Isaiah also taught of His strengthening us: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee” (Isaiah 41:10).

... Speaking of some of his own mortal challenges, the Apostle Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13). 

And so we see that because of His Atonement, the Savior has the power to succor to help every mortal pain and affliction. Sometimes His power heals an infirmity, but the scriptures and our experiences teach that sometimes He succors or helps by giving us the strength or patience to endure our infirmities. 

III.

What are these mortal pains and afflictions and infirmities that our Savior experienced and suffered?

- We all have pains and afflictions and infirmities at one time or another. Apart from what we experience because of our sins, mortality is filled with frequent struggles, heartaches, and suffering.

- We and those we love suffer sickness. At some time each of us also experiences pain from traumatic injuries or from other physical or mental difficulties. All of us suffer and grieve in connection with the death of a loved one. We all experience failure in our personal responsibilities, our family relationships, ... 

- When a spouse or a child rejects what we know to be true and strays from the path of righteousness, we experience particularly stressful pain, just like the father of the prodigal son in Jesus’s memorable parable (see Luke 15:11–32)."

Stay Tuned until next time.