Mormon Musings

If dying to that old way of using God’s law is, then, Nephi’s own explanation for how we are saved by grace, why does he add in 2 Nephi 25:23 that we are saved by grace “after all we can do”? What does this additional phrase mean? In particular, what did “after all we can do” mean when the Book of Mormon was first translated into English? As Daniel McClellan demonstrates, in 1830 the phrase “after all we can do” was unmistakably a very “specific idiom with a very clear meaning.” It was consistently used for “describing circumstances that obtain in spite of everything that may be done to overcome, prevent, or avoid them.” In short, “after all we can do” was, at that time, a clear and commonly understood way of saying “despite all we can do.” According to Nephi, we are saved by grace despite all we can do . Adam Miller (emphasis added)

“Let us, therefore, come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4.16  “Of course, all of us will fall short of our divine potential, and there is some truth in the realization that alone we are not enough. But the good news of the gospel is that with the grace of God, we are enough. With Christ’s help, we can do all things. The scriptures promise that we will “find grace to help in time of need.” … “The surprising truth is that our weaknesses can be a blessing when they humble us and turn us to Christ. Discontent becomes divine when we humbly approach Jesus Christ with our want, rather than hold back in self–pity.” —Sister Michelle D. Craig

As we go through pains, sicknesses, afflictions, and temptations of every kind, our Savior will be there to succor us.  He has paid the price through His atoning sacrifice to know us and to know how to help us.  He knows how to delivery us safely back home.  He is our Deliverer--our all! Marilyn S. Bateman

  Many of us are trying to save ourselves, holding the Atonement of Jesus Christ at arm’s distance and saying, “When I’ve done it, when I’ve perfected myself, when I’ve made myself worthy, then I’ll be worthy of the Atonement. The greatest dichotomy, the greatest problem in the entire universe, consists of two facts. The first we can read in Doctrine and Covenants 1:31: “For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.” That means he can’t stand it, he can’t tolerate it, he can’t blink, or look the other way, or sweep it under the rug. He can’t tolerate sin in the least degree. The other side of the dichotomy is very simply put: I sin, and so do you. If that were all there were to the equation, the conclusion would be inescapable that we, as sinful beings, cannot be tolerated in the presence of God. But that is not all there is to the equation. This morning I would like to talk to you about the Atonement of Christ, that glorious plan by which this dichotomy c...

  16  For verily he took not on   him the nature of   a angels ; but he took on   him   the   b seed of Abraham . 17  Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto  his  brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things  pertaining  to God, to make  a reconciliation  for the sins of the people. 18  For in that he himself hath suffered being  a tempted , he is able to  b succour  them that are tempted.  14  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the  a heavens , Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast  our  profession. 15  For we have not an high priest  a which  cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points  b tempted  like as  we are, yet  without  c sin . 16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of  a grace , that we may o...

Christ’s arrangement with us is similar to a mom providing music lessons for her child. Mom pays the piano teacher. How many know what I am talking about? Because Mom pays the debt in full, she can turn to her child and ask for something. What is it? Practice! Does the child’s practice pay the piano teacher? No. Does the child’s practice repay Mom for paying the piano teacher? No. Practicing is how the child shows appreciation for Mom’s incredible gift. It is how he takes advantage of the amazing opportunity Mom is giving him to live his life at a higher level. Mom’s joy is found not in getting repaid but in seeing her gift used—seeing her child improve. And so she continues to call for practice, practice, practice. If the child sees Mom’s requirement of practice as being too overbearing (“Gosh, Mom, why do I need to practice? None of the other kids have to practice! I’m just going to be a professional baseball player anyway!”), perhaps it is because he doesn’t yet see with mom’s ...

A BYU student once came to me and asked if we could talk. I said, “Of course. How can I help you?” She said, “I just don’t get grace.” I responded, “What is it that you don’t understand?” She said, “I know I need to do my best and then Jesus does the rest, but I can’t even do my best.” She then went on to tell me all the things she  should  be doing because she’s a Mormon that she wasn’t doing. She continued, “I know that I have to do my part and then Jesus makes up the difference and fills the gap that stands between my part and perfection. But who fills the gap that stands between where I am now and my part?” She then went on to tell me all the things that she  shouldn’t  be doing because she’s a Mormon, but she was doing them anyway. Finally I said, “Jesus doesn’t make  up  the difference. Jesus makes all  the difference. Grace is not about filling gaps. It is about filling us.” Seeing that she was still confused, I to...

Now may I speak . . . to those buffeted by false insecurity, who, though laboring devotedly in the Kingdom, have recurring feelings of falling forever short. . . . . . . This feeling of inadequacy is . . . normal. There is no way the Church can honestly describe where we must yet go and what we must yet do without creating a sense of immense distance. . . . . . . This is a Gospel of grand expectations, but God’s grace is sufficient for each of us.   Elder Neal A. Maxwell [ CR , October 1976, 14, 16; “Notwithstanding My Weakness,”  Ensign,  November 1976, 12, 14]

This is one of the best talks on the enabling power of the Atonement I have ever read.  It is also very practical in the approach...In short, it is VERY, VERY, VERY good. http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1966

The first company of Saints entered the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. Their journey was difficult and challenging; still, they sang: Come, come, ye Saints, no toil nor labor fear; But with joy wend your way. Though hard to you this journey may appear, Grace shall be as your day. [“Come, Come, Ye Saints,”  Hymns,  2002, no. 30] “Grace shall be as your day”—what an interesting phrase. We have all sung it hundreds of times, but have we stopped to consider what it means? “Grace shall be as your day”: grace shall be like a day. As dark as night may become, we can always count on the sun coming up. As dark as our trials, sins, and mistakes may appear, we can always have confidence in the grace of Jesus Christ. Do we earn a sunrise? No. Do we have to be worthy of a chance to begin again? No. We just have to accept these blessings and take advantage of them. As sure as each brand-new day, grace—the enabling power of Jesus Christ—is constant. Faithful pi...

5  And men are instructed sufficiently that they  a know  good from evil. And the  b law  is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is  c justified ; or, by the law men are  d cut  off. Yea, by the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever.   6  Wherefore,  a redemption  cometh in and through the  b Holy   c Messiah ; for he is full of  d grace  and truth.   7  Behold, he offereth himself a  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  b none  else can the  c ends  of the law be answered.   8  Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God,  a save ...