He Hath Risen Again

The New Testament is a powerful witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We have the testimonies of the four gospel writers, describing numerous instances where the resurrected Savior visited those He had loved in life. The Book of Mormon likewise is an important witness of His resurrection as thousands of people saw Him descend from heaven and minister to them. Numerous prophets such as Abinadi and Alma also bore witness of His resurrection in a powerful way. The Doctrine and Covenants is likewise a compelling witness of the resurrection of the Savior. Every one of the revelations given directly from Him (which is most of them), indirectly witnesses that He lives because it is His voice speaking to us in this dispensation. For example, in the very first verse we have these words: “Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together” (Doctrine and Covenants 1:1). For Him to dwell on high, to have His eyes upon us, and to be able to speak to us implies that He is dead no longer: He lives and His voice is unto all of us.

                Other passages in the Doctrine and Covenants directly witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Lord spoke of the fact that He lives as the ultimate truth when He said, “Oliver Cowdery, verily, verily, I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth, who is your God and your Redeemer, even so surely shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith” (Doctrine and Covenants 8:1). Similarly, speaking of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon He said, “And he has translated the book, even that part which I have commanded him, and as your Lord and your God liveth it is true” (Doctrine and Covenants 17:6). Both of these statements by the Savior suggest that for Him, the strongest way to affirm the truthfulness of a statement is to suggest it is as true as the fact that He lives. In another revelation to Oliver Cowdery the Savior also bore witness of His resurrection, speaking of Himself in third person: “For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him. And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance” (Doctrine and Covenants 18:11-12). Joseph Smith bore record that He saw the Risen Christ when he wrote, “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-24). Four years later he had another vision of the Savior and wrote this powerful description, “We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber. His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying: I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (Doctrine and Covenants 110:2-4). He was slain and yet He lives; He rose from the grave and stands as our advocate. He has been seen as a resurrected Being not only in the meridian of time but in our day as well. The Savior spoke of how He would with great power show His resurrected body to the Jews at Jerusalem in a coming day: “And then shall the Jews look upon me and say: What are these wounds in thine hands and in thy feet? Then shall they know that I am the Lord; for I will say unto them: These wounds are the wounds with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. I am he who was lifted up. I am Jesus that was crucified. I am the Son of God” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:51-52). They will see and know that though He died and was crucified, He rose from the grave and lives.

                The vision of Joseph F. Smith of the world of the spirits in Doctrine and Covenants 138 is also a powerful witness of the Savior’s resurrection. We learn what He did during “the brief time intervening between the crucifixion and his resurrection” (v27). There He moved forward the work of salvation for all those who had died, “and there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall” (v19). He confirmed that not only would He be resurrected, but also all the children of men would live again because of Him: “These the Lord taught, and gave them power to come forth, after his resurrection from the dead, to enter into his Father’s kingdom, there to be crowned with immortality and eternal life” (v51). The Doctrine and Covenants affirms over and over that Jesus rose from the grave, and because He lives, we too will all be resurrected.