The Atonement

The Atonement is so personal to me, and I decided to express my thoughts on it.

First, I want to emphasize that Gethsemane, the trials (whipped, spit upon, mocked, etc.) and the crucifixion were ALL part of the Atonement. They are all extremely important and part of the process, not just the cross, and not just Gethsemane. 

Gethsemane is Greek from the Hebrew word "The Sacred Oil Press"

Gethsemane is a garden where they would take olives (not the soft, black squishy olives we are used to, but like an extremely hard nut) and roll a HUGE stone over them, until the crushing weight causes the olive to break and causes the oils to "bleed out" from the olive. 

Don't you think that this is significant?

Jesus went to the garden of Gethsemane where he was crushed and bled out for our sins, just like the olives. 

In Mark 14:36 Jesus prays to Heavenly Father and says "Abba, Father" 

If you look up Abba you will discover that Abba has two meanings. 

1. Papa

2. Father

I'd like to think that he called him "Papa." It's a little more intimate and personal :) I believe Jesus had that kind of relationship with the Father. 

Anyway, he pleads, "Take away this cup from me..." In the verse prior to this, 35, it says that "he went forward a little, and fell on the ground".

I don't know if we were allowed to watch from Heaven as this happened. I don't know if we were able to hear the plea in his voice, but I'm willing to bet that the moment that Jesus fell to the ground, Jesus, He who had never shown any sign of any weakness, that when he fell to the ground in fear and pain, all of us wanted to reach out to Him. I'm willing to bet that many of us were cringing as we watched our loving brother struggle... so much that he could not even stand.

As EVERY sin was thrust upon Him, he bled from every pore. 

Now, I want you to think about this for a second. 

What do you feel after you've sinned?

Guilt. Shame. Loneliness. Embarrassment. Regret. Pain. Depression. Fear. Anxiety. Loss of Love. Etc. 

He felt those for the first time that night.

But worst of all, He was cut off from God. 

And when you're cut off from God, you feel the full fury of Hell thrust upon you. You feel God's wrath. 

Jesus went to Hell for us. 

His whole body/soul was being crushed. He was bleeding out of every pore. Every part of His body should have been screaming to kill itself and give up the ghost. 

But He didn't. 

Most people say, "I'm grateful that Jesus died for me." 

I'm grateful for that too.

But, I'm most grateful that Jesus lived for me. I'm grateful that He didn't give up. I'm grateful that He held onto His life and completed the Atonement so that I could be saved. I'm grateful that Jesus took away the pains of Hell so I wouldn't have to feel them myself. I'm grateful that because of Jesus Christ, I can repent of my sins and return to live in Heaven. I'm grateful that He was risen from the dead and was victorious over the sting of death. I'm grateful that he lives today. 

Don't forget to be awesome! 

Rebuilding OUR temple

 This year I am taking New Testament as my religion class at BYU. For part of it, we are required to write a reflection each week about something we have learned. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to put those writing/thoughts onto my blog. So, here ya go :) 

This week we read in Matthew 4. This is the story of Jesus fasting for 40 days and then is tempted by the devil. One thing that stuck out to me was that Satan and God have different ways to make us happy. Satan will appeal to us in instantaneous gratification. Instantaneous gratification is to experience the pleasure of something you wanted without delay. Basically, we get whatever we want at that moment without thinking about the past or future, a.k.a always living in the now. God, on the other hand, tells us to trust him. He even tells us that if we follow him, it won't be easy. That alone can cause others to stray from the light of Christ. Today, our world is so used to getting things instantaneously. We have lightning fast internet, ovens, light, phones, etc. If there is any sort of delay, we easily become frustrated and fussy. This is a huge advantage for Satan. If we are down and distraught, it is easy to fill the agony with drugs or being some place we should not be...something that will fix the pain immediately. While this indulgence will last for hours, or maybe days, it is not eternal. God wants us to follow him, step by step, until we are perfected by Him. The joy we will feel at the end of the journey to Him, will be far greater than any instantaneous gratification we would ever experience. 

It would have been so easy for Jesus to fall into the enticings of instant gratification. In Matthew 4:6 it says, "And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: an in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash they foot against a stone."

It was not easy for Jesus to gain followers in the beginning of his ministry. Many mocked him, thought him to be a fraud, and cast him out. If he were to through himself off the pinnacle and an angel to come and catch him, all of the people below would witness miracle. Witnessing miracles is a quick way to convert someone. Jesus would have had an instant following, a lot less work for Jesus. However, as we know, witnessing miracles is not enough to convert souls forever. Moses's people witnessed many, many miracles. The plagues, parting of the Red Sea, manna from heaven, etc. Yet, they were not strong enough and strayed from Gospel of Christ. The best way to convert people, is by small and simple things. 

We also covered John 2. This chapter covers Jesus cleansing the temple. In verse 19 it says, "Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." This can apply metaphorically to our lives as well. In church we learn that our body is a temple. Jesus can come and clean inside our "temple" just as he did for the temple in Jerusalem. Our temples are blemished with sins and temptations. If we let him, Jesus can cleanse our temple through the atonement. However, just as it was for the temple in Jerusalem, it is not a pleasant process to go through. He will "pour out" parts of us that we have held onto for so long. He will "overthrow" our habits and "drive away" anything that is not inline with heaven. This is so powerful. He can rebuild us and make us as pure as himself and our Father in heave. The Atonement can do this for all of us. 

Don't forget to be awesome(: