With Easter coming up on Sunday, here are a few quotes about Jesus Christ’s resurrection and atonement from current and past leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“In that first bright Easter morn, Peter and John ran with alarm to the empty tomb, into which had been placed the lifeless body of the Savior Jesus Christ just days before. Similar concern must have filled the mind of Mary Magdalene as she gazed into the sepulcher now void of the body of the Master. Confusion and dismay were not to last, however, as the Resurrected Lord made manifest to those so dear to Him in life the reality of eternal life and the miracle of the Resurrection. (See John 20.)
We now rejoice with all of faithful Christendom at the marvelous message of the Resurrection. By virtue of His loving gift of life, each of us will rise from the grave, body and spirit joined together inseparably throughout eternity.
We proclaim that the “bands of death” (Mosiah 15:8) have, in very deed, been broken for the children of men. Each of us may lay aside all wonder, all fear of the darkness of death and rejoice, “having a perfect brightness of hope.” (3 Nephi 31:20)
We offer our solemn testimony that He lives; that the blessings of the Resurrection will be realized for each of us. We join with you in an expression of humble gratitude for His willing sacrifice and pray the blessings of heaven will attend us all, as we commemorate at this Easter time the hope and eternal promise of the Resurrection.” Gordon B. Hinckley
________________________________________
“The plan of salvation could not be brought about without an atonement… The
atoning sacrifice had to be carried out by the sinless Son of God, for fallen man could not atone for his own sins. The Atonement had to be infinite and eternal to cover all men throughout all eternity. Through His suffering and death, the Savior atoned for the sins of all men. His Atonement began in Gethsemane and continued on the cross and culminated with the Resurrection.” C. Scott Grow
____________________________________________
“Now a good many people in the world do not know what the resurrection is. Do you teach your children and your associates what it means? . . . [The Savior’s] resurrection is plain to the Latter-day Saints who understand the gospel, but there are so many who do not understand what it means. . . . The purpose of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is to prepare every man, woman and child for the time when all those who have died will be brought forth from their graves, and when our Heavenly Father will establish his kingdom upon this earth and the righteous will dwell there and Jesus Christ will be our King and our Law-giver.” George Albert Smith
In this Easter season of the year – when we are reminded yet again of all Christ has done
for us, how dependent we are upon his redeeming grace and personal resurrection, and how singular his name is in the power to dispel evil and death and save the human soul – may we all do more to respect and revere his holy name and gently, courteously encourage others to do the same. Howard W. Hunter
___________________________________________
“Of all the victories in the chronicles of humanity, none is so great, none so universal in its effects, none so everlasting in its consequences as the victory of the crucified Lord, who came forth from the tomb that first Easter morning. . . .” Gordon B. Hinckley
________________________________________
“This unique mortal mission of the Lord—the gospel as He defined it—we know as the
Atonement. The fulness of the gospel, therefore, connotes a fuller comprehension of the Atonement. This we do not obtain from the Bible alone. The word atonement, in any of its forms, is mentioned only once in the King James Version of the New Testament. In the Book of Mormon, it appears 39 times! The Book of Mormon also contains more references to the Resurrection than does the Bible.” Russell M. Nelson
“On Easter Sunday we celebrate the most long-awaited and glorious event in the history of the world. It is the day that changed everything. On that day, my life changed. Your life changed. The destiny of all God’s children changed. When I think of what the Savior did for us leading up to that first Easter Sunday, I want to lift up my voice and shout praises to the Most High God and His Son, Jesus Christ! The gates of heaven are unlocked! The windows of heaven are opened! Today and forevermore, God’s grace is available to all.” Dieter F. Uchtdorf
_______________________________________
“I confess that I have reflected at length upon that moment and the resurrection which was shortly to follow it. I have wondered what that reunion must have been like: the Father
that loved this Son so much, the Son that honored and revered His Father in every word and deed. For two who were one as these two were one, what must that embrace have been like? What must that divine companionship be yet? We can only wonder and admire. And we can, on an Easter weekend, yearn to live worthily of some portion of that relationship ourselves. As a father, I wonder if I and all other fathers could do more to build a sweeter, stronger relationship with our sons and daughters here on earth. Dads, is it too bold to hope that our children might have some small portion of the feeling for us that the Divine Son felt for His Father? Might we earn more of that love by trying to be more of what God was to His child? In any case, we do know that a young person’s developing concept of God centers on characteristics observed in that child’s earthly parents.” Jeffrey R. Holland
__________________________________________
“Brothers and sisters, Easter is a time when the Christian world focuses on the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That one moment in time changed everything forever. The Savior broke down every barrier that stood in the way of our return to a loving Heavenly Father.” M. Russell Ballard
“Without the Resurrection, the gospel of Jesus Christ becomes a litany of wise sayings and seemingly unexplainable miracles – but sayings and miracles with no ultimate triumph. No, the ultimate triumph is in the ultimate miracle: for the first time in the history of mankind, one who was dead raised himself into living immortality. He was the Son of God, the Son of our immortal Father in Heaven, and his triumph over physical and spiritual death is the good news every Christian tongue should speak.” Howard W. Hunter
____________________________________________
“In all the history of the world there have been many great and wise souls, many of whom claimed special knowledge of God. But when the Savior rose from the tomb, He did something no one had ever done. He did something no one else could do. He broke the bonds of death, not only for Himself but for all who have ever lived – the just and the unjust (see John 5:28–29).” Joseph B. Wirthlin
_____________________________________
“The Atonement of Jesus Christ does not just provide a way to clean up messes; it provides
the purpose and desire to avoid making more messes. The Atonement doesn’t allow us to ignore our appetites or pretend they don’t matter, but to educate and elevate them.” Brad Wilcox
__________________________________________
“God’s desire that Latter-day Saints keep on trying also extends beyond overcoming sin. Whether we suffer because of troubled relationships, economic challenges, or illnesses or as a consequence of someone else’s sins, the Savior’s infinite Atonement can heal even—and perhaps especially—those who have innocently suffered. He understands perfectly what it is like to suffer innocently as a consequence of another’s transgression. As prophesied, the Savior will “bind up the brokenhearted, … give … beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, [and] the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” No matter what, with His help, God expects Latter-day Saints to keep on trying.” Dale G. Renlund
