A Special Witness of the Name of Jesus Christ

On this Good Friday, I reviewed many of President Nelson’s talks since he became the president of the Church and looked for His testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ. In his first general conference he declared, “In this, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we worship Him who commenced His infinite Atonement in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was willing to suffer for the sins and weaknesses of each of us, which suffering caused Him ‘to bleed at every pore.’ He was crucified on Calvary’s cross and rose the third day as the first resurrected being of our Heavenly Father’s children. I love Him and testify that He lives! It is He who leads and guides His Church. Without our Redeemer’s infinite Atonement, not one of us would have hope of ever returning to our Heavenly Father. Without His Resurrection, death would be the end. Our Savior’s Atonement made eternal life a possibility and immortality a reality for all.” President Nelson has repeatedly and consistently affirmed the reality of the Savior’s atonement, death, and resurrection that offers us immortality and the way to eternal life.

                In the October 2018 general conference President Nelson affirmed, “Premortally, He was Jehovah, God of the Old Testament. Under the direction of His Father, He was the Creator of this and other worlds. He chose to submit to the will of His Father and do something for all of God’s children that no one else could do! Condescending to come to earth as the Only Begotten of the Father in the flesh, He was brutally reviled, mocked, spit upon, and scourged. In the Garden of Gethsemane, our Savior took upon Himself every pain, every sin, and all of the anguish and suffering ever experienced by you and me and by everyone who has ever lived or will ever live. Under the weight of that excruciating burden, He bled from every pore. All of this suffering was intensified as He was cruelly crucified on Calvary’s cross. Through these excruciating experiences and His subsequent Resurrection—His infinite Atonement—He granted immortality to all and ransomed each one of us from the effects of sin on condition of our repentance.” Again he testified of the Savior’s suffering and infinite atonement to deliver us from death and sin. In the next general conference he summarized the help Jesus Christ offers us in these words: “Jesus Christ teaches the way back to our eternal home. He understands our Heavenly Father’s plan of eternal progression better than any of us. After all, He is the keystone of it all. He is our Redeemer, our Healer, and our Savior. Ever since Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, Jesus the Christ has offered His mighty arm to help all who choose to follow Him.” President Nelson wants us to understand not just what Jesus has done but also what He can do for us in our lives today.

                In other more recent talks President Nelson has repeatedly born witness of the Savior and His power to bless us. In the proclamation given in the April 2020 conference he declared, “We solemnly proclaim that God loves His children in every nation of the world. God the Father has given us the divine birth, the incomparable life, and the infinite atoning sacrifice of His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. By the power of the Father, Jesus rose again and gained the victory over death. He is our Savior, our Exemplar, and our Redeemer.” In the same conference he testified, “Next Sunday is Easter Sunday, when we will again commemorate the Atonement and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of His Atonement, His gift of resurrection will come to all who have ever lived. And His gift of eternal life will come to all who qualify by fidelity to ordinances and covenants made in His holy temples.” The April 2021 general conference fell on Easter Sunday, and President Nelson bore witness of the power of faith in the Savior: “On this Easter Sunday, with my deep feelings of love and gratitude, I declare my witness that Jesus Christ is indeed risen. He is risen to lead His Church. He is risen to bless the lives of all of God’s children, wherever they live. With faith in Him, we can move the mountains in our lives.” He encouraged us to focus on the Savior last October in these words: “Nothing invites the Spirit more than fixing your focus on Jesus Christ. Talk of Christ, rejoice in Christ, feast upon the words of Christ, and press forward with steadfastness in Christ. Make your Sabbath a delight as you worship Him, partake of the sacrament, and keep His day holy.” And in this most recent general conference he again affirmed the power the Savior can give to us: “When the Savior atoned for all mankind, He opened a way that those who follow Him can have access to His healing, strengthening, and redeeming power. These spiritual privileges are available to all who seek to hear Him and follow Him.” He summarized in his closing remarks this way: “The Lord loves you. He is your Savior and your Redeemer. He leads and guides His Church. May we be a people worthy of the Lord, who said, ‘Ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.’”

                President Nelson was ordained an apostle on April 7, 1984. With that calling he became one of the “special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world” (Doctrine and Covenants 107:23). Another revelation put it this way to the Prophet Joseph Smith: “With Peter, and James, and John, whom I have sent unto you, by whom I have ordained you and confirmed you to be apostles, and especial witnesses of my name, and bear the keys of your ministry and of the same things which I revealed unto them” (Doctrine and Covenants 27:12). Joseph Smith was a special witness of the Savior then and today President Nelson and all the apostles are called to bear witness of Jesus Christ to a world that is increasingly rejecting Him. How blessed we are to have a modern prophet to testify of the Savior Jesus Christ, and, most importantly, how grateful we are for the truth of President Nelson’s testimony: “He is our Redeemer, our Healer, and our Savior. Ever since Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, Jesus the Christ has offered His mighty arm to help all who choose to follow Him.”