The Victory of Our Beloved Savior

In my calling as an Apostle, I have traveled extensively and had the privilege of meeting children, youth, and adults throughout much of the world. There are moments of great joy in life, but one thing I have seen with my own eyes and felt in the depths of my heart is that in addition to happiness and joy, life holds moments of heartbreak and suffering.

I will never forget sitting with four young children whose parents’ lives had been brutally ended by an intruder in their own home while the children slept, or meeting with a woman who had been abused as a girl by a trusted relative, or sitting by the bedside of a young girl who had sustained a brain injury after falling from a bicycle and would shortly die, or listening to the sobs of a woman whose husband had betrayed her and his temple covenants in an egregious way for many years.

I have felt the pain of a couple whose adult child no longer believed the truths of the gospel and sought to weaken the faith of others in the family. I have visited with the distraught parents and friends of a young man filled with promise who took his own life. I have felt the godly sorrow of those who have committed sin and truly wanted to repent and the devastation of those affected by the sin.

I have seen the heartbreak of mental illness both for the one who suffers and for those who silently suffer as they watch with little ability to help. I have seen the enormous personal loss caused by natural disasters, floods, storms, fire, and earthquakes. I have witnessed the upheaval in countries from political storms, wars, and destruction, and the agony that comes when the unexpected is thrust upon those who are innocent and seeking to do what is right.

Healing Hands, by Kolby Larsen, may not be copied

The Savior Succors Us

In speaking of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, President James E. Faust (1920–2007), Second Counselor in the First Presidency, said: “The injured should do what they can to work through their trials, and the Savior will ‘succor his people according to their infirmities’ [Alma 7:12]. He will help us carry our burdens. Some injuries are so hurtful and deep that they cannot be healed without help from a higher power and hope for perfect justice and restitution in the next life. … He understands our pain and will walk with us even in our darkest hours.”

I feel increasingly drawn to the Savior’s love and the never-ending blessings promised us through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He did not shield us from the difficult experiences of life that bring immeasurable pain, but He protected us from everlasting suffering and estrangement from Heavenly Father and allowed us, through His all-encompassing suffering, to have the possibility of perfect joy and eternal happiness in the presence of God.

President Dallin H. Oaks reminded us: “By far, God’s strongest mortal help was His provision of a Savior, Jesus Christ, who would suffer to pay the price and provide forgiveness for repented sins. That merciful and glorious Atonement explains why faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the first principle of the gospel. His Atonement ‘bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead’ (Alma 42:23), and it ‘atone[s] for the sins of the world’ (Alma 34:8), erasing all of our repented sins and giving our Savior power to succor us in our mortal infirmities.”

Detail from Prayer at Gethsemane, by Del Parson, may be copied for Church use only

Eternity’s Pivotal Event

When I think of the suffering I have personally seen, which is so infinitesimally small compared with all those who have or will ever walk the earth, I cannot, with any words I know, describe the feelings in my heart for what must have occurred in the heart and mind and body and soul of the Savior in His sacred moments of all-encompassing suffering for the sins and pain of all humanity.

The pivotal event of all eternity began as Jesus went “unto a place called Gethsemane” (Matthew 26:36) in the Mount of Olives outside the city walls of Jerusalem. He said to His disciples, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death” (Matthew 26:38).

He prayed, saying, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Matthew 26:39). He returned to His disciples, found them asleep, went away again, and prayed a second time. “O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. … And [He] prayed the third time, saying the same words” (Matthew 26:42, 44).

Jesus drank the bitter cup and suffered beyond our mortal comprehension both in the garden and on the cross. Without sin, He took upon Himself all our sins, that as we come unto Him and repent, our sins and burdens are lifted from us (see 2 Corinthians 5:21).

Jesus’s suffering, death, and atoning sacrifice had long been anticipated. Speaking 700 years before Jesus’s birth, Isaiah prophesied that “the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). Jesus spoke of giving His life as “a ransom” (Matthew 20:28; see also 1 Timothy 2:6) “for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28) for all who would believe in Him and repent of their sins. Peter described how He “suffered for [our] sins” (1 Peter 3:18), that through His stripes we are healed (see 1 Peter 2:24). He did what no other could do to allow us to return to the presence of our Father. He was “bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5).

Following the suffering in Gethsemane, His agony continued—the betrayal by one who walked with Him, the ridicule before unjust rulers, the pain of His body being scourged, the crown of thorns pressed into His head by the cruel and unmerciful soldiers (see John 18:2–3, 12–14; Mark 15:15–20), and the heavy beam thrust upon the torn flesh of His back as He moved toward Golgotha (see John 19:16–17).

On the cross, the extreme agony felt in Gethsemane returned with an acuteness no human could endure. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, solitarily bore the divine commission by His Father to lay down His life. The soldiers and rulers could not take it from Him (see John 10:18). In reverence and humility, Jesus bowed His head and said, “It is finished” (John 19:30).

The final moment of His mortal life was complete. There are no words to describe the magnitude of His precious gift. It will never be required of another. Jesus Christ suffered “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10).

With His divine mission accomplished, He would now be the first in all human history to rise from the grave into immortality (see 1 Corinthians 15:21–23).

To the women at the tomb, the angels said:

“Why seek ye the living among the dead?

“He is not here, but is risen” (Luke 24:5–6).

To His Apostles, He said, “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself” (Luke 24:39). Later, “he was seen [by more than] five hundred … at once” (1 Corinthians 15:6). Eyewitnesses saw the resurrected Savior. He was not dead. He was alive.

Jesus Christ broke the chains and shackles of the everlasting bondage of death for every person who has lived or will live on earth (see 1 Corinthians 15:22). He conquered our all-encompassing enemy; the enemy of death was forever vanquished.

President Russell M. Nelson (1924–2025) said: “Jesus Christ took upon Himself your sins, your pains, your heartaches, and your infirmities. You do not have to bear them alone! He will forgive you as you repent. He will bless you with what you need. He will heal your wounded soul. As you yoke yourself to Him, your burdens will feel lighter. If you will make and keep covenants to follow Jesus Christ, you will find that the painful moments of your life are temporary. Your afflictions will be ‘swallowed up in the joy of Christ’ [Alma 31:38]”

As one of His ordained Apostles, I have experienced the spiritual and personal moments that have brought to me a sure and certain witness that He lives. At this Easter season, may these words softly abide in our minds and hearts: “Let me not forget, O Savior, Thou didst bleed and die for me,” as we rejoice in singing: