Topic: Atonement and Sacrifice

Romans 5:8-11 > 2 Nephi 9:6-8 > 1 Peter 1:18-20 > The Acts 20:28 > Genesis 22:1-13 > Hebrews 11:17-18 > Jacob 4:5 > Isaiah 53 > Leviticus 17:11 > Matthew 26:28 > Mosiah 3:16 > Zechariah 9:9,11 > 1 Samuel 15:22 > Psalms 51:16-17 > 3 Nephi 9:18-22 > Doctrine and Covenants 59:8 > Doctrine and Covenants 97:8-9 > Hebrews 13:15-16 > 1 Peter 2:5 > Doctrine and Covenants 64:22-23 > Doctrine and Covenants 97:12-16 > Doctrine and Covenants 132:50 

The greatest event to ever occur on this earth is the atonement of Jesus Christ. Why was the atonement necessary? Why was it only possible through Jesus Christ? Let’s begin this discussion in Romans chapter 5 verses 8 through 11. From the very beginning of these verses we see that God’s love for us, His children, was why He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to live and die for us. We also learn that it was through the blood of Christ that we are saved from His wrath and that without His Son and His sacrifice for us, we are enemies of the Living God. But as verse 11 teaches, we have joy in the knowledge that through the atonement of Jesus Christ, we can be reconciled to God. As discussed in the previous scripture train, Adam and Eve partook of the forbidden fruit that mortality might be brought to pass. In the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi chapter 9 verses 6 through 8 we are reminded that as a result of this choice, sin and death entered the world and death and hell would be their final destiny if not for the atonement of Jesus Christ. However, we learn from Christ’s chief Apostle, Peter, in 1 Peter chapter 1 verses 18 through 20 that from the beginning God knew and had planned for this. In the beginning, He foreordained and provided a Savior, even His Son, Jesus Christ, to come to earth, provide the atonement, of which His death and resurrection was part of, and thus offer us reconciliation to God.

The word Atonement describes the bringing together, or the reconciling of those who are estranged. This describes the situation between us and God. Because we are mortal, we shall die. Death separates the body from the spirit; the body will lie in its final resting place to rot and to crumble and return to its natural elements. The spirit, due to sin, must remain separate from God. Thus, our immortal spirit must become subject to the devil for it cannot return to God. Our spirits are under the condemnation of sin and the justice of God must be measured out in full.  Thankfully, God provided a way for our escape from death and hell. The Atonement of Jesus Christ redeems every child of God from physical death and provides, upon our choice, a way for us to be redeemed from hell or spiritual death; for only members of His church were purchased, as taught in The Acts chapter 20 verse 28, “With His own blood”.

Throughout history, even from the days of Adam and Eve, the children of God were taught of the coming of the Messiah. One of the great stories of how this most important event was taught to Abraham is found in Genesis chapter 22 verses 1 through 13.  Most will remember the story how Abraham was blessed with a son in his old age. It was a miracle that he and his wife brought this boy into the world; they were both near 100 years old. This son was named Isaac. In Hebrews chapter 11 verses 17 through 18, we learn that it was through Isaac that the covenant God made with Abraham was to be perpetuated; yet, while Isaac was still a lad, God commanded Abraham to take Isaac to the land of Moriah and there offer him as a burnt offering to God. Certainly Abraham was shocked by this commandment, but being obedient he took Isaac, wood for a fire and coals from which he would start the fire and after a journey of 3 days, they arrived in the land of Moriah. Everything proceeded as it should; Isaac was placed upon the alter and just as Abraham was about to strike the knife down upon his son the voice of the Lord came to him commanding him not to harm his son. It was then that Abraham saw not far away a ram caught in a thicket. The ram was then offered as a sacrifice in the stead of Isaac. What was the purpose that God would command His faithful servant to make a sacrifice of his only son, particularly his only son and through whom the covenant would be perpetuated? There may be several things we can learn from this story, but the one important thing to learn, as is taught in Jacob chapter 4 verse 5, was that God wanted Abraham to understand and to learn that God Himself would send His only Begotten Son into the world to be sacrificed for the sins of the world. From this story, we can place ourselves in the same setting as Abraham and try to imagine what it must have been like. With some empathy, we can then understand that it was not easy for God either, to sacrifice His only Son, whom He loved with a pure and perfect love.

Isaiah prophecies a great deal of the coming and mission of the Messiah. In chapter 53, Isaiah teaches us a good overview of what Jesus Christ would do for us; as we read these verses we can also come to understand that we, the benefactors of His mighty grace, are largely unappreciative. Let’s examine a little closer all that He did for us: 1. He bore our grief, 2. Carried our sorrows, 3. Smitten of God, 4. Afflicted, 5. Wounded for our transgressions, 6. Bruised for our iniquities, 7. He was chastened for our peace, 8. Whipped for our own spiritual healing, 9. He was oppressed, 10. He was hung upon the cross, 11. He made His soul an offering for our sins, 12. He voluntarily gave His life for us. What did He not do? 1. He did not complain, 2. He committed no violence, 3. He never spoke deceit, 4. He never committed any wrongdoing, 5. He never sinned, He was clean and pure before God and because of this, He was able to atone for our sins. Most of what is stated in the 12 works mentioned above is wrapped up in the atonement. 

Another important lesson that we learn from the atonement of Jesus Christ and the offering of animal sacrifices for thousands of years in preparation for Christ’s coming is that there is something important about the need of a blood atonement. Leviticus chapter 17 verse 11 teaches us that, “It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” Then in Matthew chapter 26 verse 28, when Jesus first introduced the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper to His apostles, He reminded them that they would drink the wine in remembrance of the blood that He would shed for the remission of sins. The Book of Mormon teaches this same principle in Mosiah chapter 3 verse 16, “The blood of Christ atoneth for their sins.” In the book of Zechariah, verse 9, amidst the prophecy of Jesus Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, verse 11 teaches us that, “By the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.” Meaning that by the blood of Christ, we, who were prisoners of death and hell, wherein there was no water, a symbol of life, would be delivered. I believe that blood is necessary for this same reason. Blood is a symbol of life, without blood there would be no life in the physical, mortal body. Thus, Christ, by giving His life’s blood made it possible that we would have life again after death. We are not taught why it is that the offering of a blood sacrifice is so critical, only that it is. The offering of a life through the shedding of blood was the only way life could be returned or restored to the rest of us.

In this next section, I would like to address the subject of what our part is in the atonement of Jesus Christ. In 1 Samuel chapter 15 verse 22 and Psalms chapter 51 verses 16 and 17, we learn that it is not that God loves burnt offerings and blood sacrifices, but rather He loves obedience and a broken heart. We also learn in 3 Nephi chapter 9 verses 18 through 22 and Doctrine and Covenants section 59 verse 8, that after His resurrection Christ commanded that there should be no more blood sacrifices; rather, He commands us to come before Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. To have a broken heart means that we are broken hearted for having offended our God who loves us so much that He would give His life for us that we might have life. To have a contrite heart means that we come before Him humbled, full of gratitude for the magnificent love and grace He has offered us. So, we come before Him humble and full of sorrow. We offend God when we sin placing our carnal desires above His righteous, perfect desires for us. Christ came to save us from sin and its terrible consequences. Thus, we learn that through the atonement we can avoid sin by following the Savior; if we fall into temptation and sin, we can, through the atonement of Jesus Christ, repent of our sins and thus reconcile ourselves with God. In the Doctrine and Covenants section 97 verses 8 and 9, we learn some more very important principles along these same lines. A person, who is suffering from a broken heart, knowing that he has offended God, is also an honest person; he is being honest with himself for he knows he has offended God. Thus, from this honest broken heart is born a humble or contrite heart as he approaches God, putting into effect the atonement in his behalf, pleading for forgiveness. The principle to learn is that we learn obedience through our own sacrifices. Just as Christ made the ultimate sacrifice, we learn to sacrifice by being obedient. What is it that we are sacrificing? We are offering upon the alter our own carnal desires, lusts and appetites that offend God or that are contrary to His will for us. As we learn God’s will for us, then we learn to give up those things that offend Him; in other words, we sacrifice our carnal will and learn to accept His righteous will. This is our sacrifice. These same principles are taught in Hebrews chapter 13 verses 15 and 16. In these verses, we learn to be grateful for what He has done for us and then to be obedient to Him.

In 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 5, Doctrine and Covenants section 64 verses 22 and 23, and section 97 verses 12 through 16, we learn another principle in addition to the one above. We learn that to keep the commandments of God requires some degree of sacrifice. Peter teaches us that there are spiritual sacrifices; in the Doctrine and Covenants, we learn that one of these spiritual sacrifices is the payment of tithes. We go to work and work diligently and honestly to earn money for the support of our family; then God asks of us ten percent. If our wages are meager, then ten percent can be a huge sacrifice; if our wages are large, then our ten percent could be a huge sum of money, money that could buy expensive material possessions and bring much pleasure. These tithes, as Doctrine and Covenants 97 teaches, go to build temples; not only temples, but they build schools, churches, hospitals and assist in preaching the gospel and many other spiritual things. To make an honest sacrifice requires a spiritual conviction; it requires faith in Jesus Christ and a desire to grow spiritually. Up to this point, I have not mentioned the blessings that come from obedience and sacrifice nor will they be mentioned here. The principle taught in these verses is that the atonement of Jesus Christ makes all things possible. Prior to the atonement only death and hell was possible. After the atonement, life, happiness, and salvation became possible and that is everything! But, it does require some effort on our part, our salvation is not just one sided, it does not all rest on Jesus; we hold a share of the responsibility for ourselves.

Finally, in Doctrine and Covenants section 132 verse 50, we learn that Christ will see our sacrifices that came through our obedience to His commandments; as a result He promises us that He will make a way for our escape from the evils and temptations of the world, just as He delivered Abraham and Isaac because of their obedience. There cannot be any obedience without sacrifice; there cannot be salvation without obedience. Sacrifice and obedience was exemplified by our Savior, Jesus Christ; He expects nothing less from us! We, too, are expected to demonstrate our obedience through our own sacrifices.