The Most Influential Person In History

I remember frequently looking through a book that my parents had when I was growing up which gave a list of the 100 most influential people in history.  The list placed Jesus Christ 3^rd after Mohammed and Isaac Newton, and part of the reason I remember was that Christ was not a great military leader—at least that’s why He was placed behind Mohammed.  Of course, as Christians and especially as Latter-day Saints we disagree and say that Christ is not only first on the list, but without Him no accomplishment of anyone else would be meaningful.  Here are some of the ways in which Christ has been the most influential person to ever walk the earth:

·       He was the Creator of all things.  John taught us, “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3).  The Savior Himself testified, “I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are” (3 Nephi 9:15).  Without Him there would be no earth and therefore we would not be here. 

·       The Light of Christ has enabled all men to know right and wrong.  The Savior said to the Prophet Joseph, “I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world” (D&C 93:2).  In another revelation we read that the Spirit of Jesus Christ “giveth light to every man that cometh into the world” (D&C 84:45-46).  All who have come into the world have been blessed with the light of Christ to enable them to know good from evil. Of course, some have thrown away that gift, but any who have done good to mankind were able to see the right because of the Savior’s light. 

·       Christ enabled the Resurrection for all men.  Alma taught that Christ “bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead” (Alma 40:3).  Jacob testified in these words, “And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death, of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead” (2 Nephi 9:11).  Any person who has ever lost a loved one—and surely that is nearly all people who have ever lived to adulthood—can take comfort that because of Christ that person will live again.  And all of us need not fear death because we know that through Christ physical death is not the end.

·       Christ paid the price of sin for everyone.  In His own words, Christ “suffered… for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent” (D&C 19:16).  Jacob spoke of the universality of His gift to us that came from His suffering: “He cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam” (2 Nephi 9:21).   

·       Christ gives us daily power to live.  Paul testified, “For in him we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28).  He also testified, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).  For any who will but have faith in Christ, they will “have power to do whatsoever things is expedient” (Moroni 7:33).  All of the other “influential” people on the 100 list are dead, but Christ is literally alive and continuing to strengthen those who come unto Him. 

At the end of his gospel John said, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written” (John 21:25).  Christ has been changing lives since Adam and will continue to to do so until He comes again.  Even if the world always can’t see the work that He performs, He has been and continues to be the most influential person of all the earth’s history.