Mormon Musings

If dying to that old way of using God’s law is, then, Nephi’s own explanation for how we are saved by grace, why does he add in 2 Nephi 25:23 that we are saved by grace “after all we can do”? What does this additional phrase mean? In particular, what did “after all we can do” mean when the Book of Mormon was first translated into English? As Daniel McClellan demonstrates, in 1830 the phrase “after all we can do” was unmistakably a very “specific idiom with a very clear meaning.” It was consistently used for “describing circumstances that obtain in spite of everything that may be done to overcome, prevent, or avoid them.” In short, “after all we can do” was, at that time, a clear and commonly understood way of saying “despite all we can do.” According to Nephi, we are saved by grace despite all we can do . Adam Miller (emphasis added)

“Let us, therefore, come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4.16  “Of course, all of us will fall short of our divine potential, and there is some truth in the realization that alone we are not enough. But the good news of the gospel is that with the grace of God, we are enough. With Christ’s help, we can do all things. The scriptures promise that we will “find grace to help in time of need.” … “The surprising truth is that our weaknesses can be a blessing when they humble us and turn us to Christ. Discontent becomes divine when we humbly approach Jesus Christ with our want, rather than hold back in self–pity.” —Sister Michelle D. Craig

 "When we read in the Scriptures of man's 'weakness,' this term includes the generic but necessary weakness inherent in the general human condition in which the flesh has such an incessant impact upon the spirit (see Ether 12:28-29).  Weakness likewise includes, however, our specific, individual weaknesses, which we are expected to overcome (see D&C 66:3; Jacob 4:7).  Life has a way of exposing these weaknesses."   Elder Neal A. Maxwell, "Lord, Increase our Faith" [1994], 84

  As you and I come to understand and employ the enabling power of the Atonement in our personal lives, we will pray and seek for strength to change our circumstances rather than praying for our circumstances to be changed. Good morning, brothers and sisters. It is for me a blessing and a remarkable responsibility to stand before you today. I appreciate the invitation from Elder Bateman to speak with you. As I entered the Marriott Center this morning, my mind was flooded with wonderful memories. I have been in this arena many, many times. I was a freshman at BYU in 1970 when the construction work on this building was started. I vividly remember sitting way up there on September 11, 1973, and listening to the teachings and testimony of President Harold B. Lee. I had returned from my mission to southern Germany just three weeks earlier, and the message he presented that day was entitled “Be Loyal to the Royal Within You.” I hope I shall never forget what I felt and heard and learned that

  16  For verily he took not on   him the nature of   a angels ; but he took on   him   the   b seed of Abraham . 17  Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto  his  brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things  pertaining  to God, to make  a reconciliation  for the sins of the people. 18  For in that he himself hath suffered being  a tempted , he is able to  b succour  them that are tempted.  14  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the  a heavens , Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast  our  profession. 15  For we have not an high priest  a which  cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points  b tempted  like as  we are, yet  without  c sin . 16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of  a grace , that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 2:16-18; 4: 14-16

If I were to emphasize one overarching point this morning, it would be this: I suspect that you and I are much more familiar with the nature of the redeeming power of the Atonement than we are with the enabling power of the Atonement. It is one thing to know that Jesus Christ came to earth to die for us. That is fundamental and foundational to the doctrine of Christ. But we also need to appreciate that the Lord desires, through His Atonement and by the power of the Holy Ghost, to live in us—not only to direct us but also to empower us. I think most of us know that when we do things wrong, when we need help to overcome the effects of sin in our lives, the Savior has paid the price and made it possible for us to be made clean through His redeeming power. Most of us clearly understand that the Atonement is for sinners. I am not so sure, however, that we know and understand that the Atonement is also for saints—for good men and women who are obedient and worthy and conscientious and who ar

Now may I speak . . . to those buffeted by false insecurity, who, though laboring devotedly in the Kingdom, have recurring feelings of falling forever short. . . . . . . This feeling of inadequacy is . . . normal. There is no way the Church can honestly describe where we must yet go and what we must yet do without creating a sense of immense distance. . . . . . . This is a Gospel of grand expectations, but God’s grace is sufficient for each of us.   Elder Neal A. Maxwell [ CR , October 1976, 14, 16; “Notwithstanding My Weakness,”  Ensign,  November 1976, 12, 14]

This is one of the best talks on the enabling power of the Atonement I have ever read.  It is also very practical in the approach...In short, it is VERY, VERY, VERY good. http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1966