"Repentance is not achieved by one's sheer determination to right the course of life. Repentance requires humbly coming to the Savior and allowing His grace to rest upon you..." p. 85
"He is the Redeemer and Savior of the world. For me, there are no words in any language to truly describe the majesty, the power, the glory, or the love of the Son of God." p. 86
"The Savior lovingly welcomed each man, woman, and child to come forward, one by one, to personally feel the wounds of the spear in His side and the prints of the nails in His hands and in His feet." p. 87
"As we deeply consider our own sins and come to recognize our complete and utter dependence upon Jesus Christ for our own personal redemption, our love for God blossoms. As we understand even the smallest part of the price He paid for our sins, we are filled with never-ending love for Him." p. 87
"Because His Father was God Himself, Jesus was able to experience the trials and temptations of mortality without being subject to the full effects of the Fall..." p. 88
HIS SINLESS LIFE
However good we are, we will always be 'unprofitable servants,' as we can never repay God for what He has given. us." p. 89
C.S. Lewis: "Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is ... You find out the strength of a wind by trying to walk against it, not by lying down. A man who gives in to temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later. That is why bad people, in one sense, know very little about badness -- they have lived a sheltered life by always giving in. We never find out the strength of the evil impulse inside us until we try to fight it: and Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full extent what temptation means." p. 89
GETHSEMANE
"Our divine Redeemer comprehends us completely." p. 91
"'Sore amazed' in Greek means astonished, awestruck. Jesus had known since our premortal life that He would take upon Himself the sins of all, but He had never experienced the Atonement. The agony, the pain, was immeasurable." p. 91
"The all-encompassing agony that caused Him to sweat great drops of blood would have left His body weakened beyond mortal comprehension, but His agony continued. The betrayal by one who walked with Him, His face slapped and spit upon as He stood before the Jewish rulers, His body scourged and a crown of thorns pressed into His head by His Roman captors, all came in ensuing hours. Finally, the heavy beam was thrust upon the torn flesh of His back as He moved toward Golgotha." p. 91
CRUCIFIXION & THE CROSS
"...That the supreme sacrifice of the son might be consummated in all its fullness, the Father seems to have withdrawn the support of His immediate Presence, leaving to the Savior of [all mankind] the glory of complete victory over the forces of sin and death." p. 92
"We will never tire of paying tribute to His goodness and loving kindness." p. 93
HIS DEATH & RESURRECTION
"As the Son of God, Jesus Christ Himself chose to lay down His life that He might lift us up. No one could take it from Him. He was the first in all human history to rise from the grave." p. 93
"Because He lives and rose from the tomb, all mankind will be resurrected." p. 93
"Because the Resurrection is real, and we know that bodies that are laid in the ground can return whole and perfect, surely we can see that sins may be forgiven and souls redeemed through repentance. Let us be forever filled with awe, gratitude, and wonder of the Savior's sacred Atonement." p. 94
HIS PROMISED RETURN
"Contemplating the glorious day of the Savior's return to the earth stirs my soul." p. 95
"We will kneel in reverence." p. 96
"There will be unforgettable reunions with the angels of heaven and the Saints upon the earth." p. 96
"In that day, the skeptics will be silent..." p. 96
LANCE
In Lance's DIVINE GIFT of FORGIVENESS class, Brother Brown reminded the group that next time, they'd discuss Chapter 8. Brother Brown said, "You've read these stories before. There is probably not going to be much of anything that is new to you. Elder Andersen basically recaps Jesus' life, ending with his death, burial and resurrection. My question for you to consider is 'why?' Why does Elder Andersen take the time to retell Jesus' story?"
That evening, Lance took another drive and found a quiet place to stop at a nearby park. He cracked open the DGF book and began to read chapter 8. Lance's mind wandered. He HAD heard these stories before. "I'm confused," Lance thought, "I know I need to get to know the Savior in a way that I haven't before but I have heard all these stories since I was a kid. I think I DO know Jesus ... at least, I know about Jesus. I told these stories to lots of people when I was a missionary, so I'm not sure what the next step is. What does it mean for me to REALLY get to know the Savior?"
Lance continued to read. He was appreciative of the reminder of all that Jesus had done for him and for everyone. Then Lance prayed, "Heavenly Father, I want to get to know Thy Son in a way I haven't before. I want to know that I can be forgiven and that I can continue to be someone Thou and Jesus can trust. Will Thou help me to get to know Thy Son in this way? I really want to understand Him. Please."
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