Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
By Jim Greer
LW contributor
Elder D. Todd Christofferson’s most recent article in the December 2020 Ensign explains the answer to the question “Why do I need a Savior?”
None of us want death to be our final status, and without Christ, there would be no resurrection. Beyond resurrection is the opportunity to dwell in God’s presence eternally. Sin keeps us from God’s presence. Even the best people need forgiveness and cleansing, which is possible only through the savior’s atoning grace.
Many ask, “Can’t God do whatever he wants and save us just because he loves us, without the need for a savior?” If you remember, Nehor the anti-Christ taught “that all mankind should be saved at the last day, and that they need not fear nor tremble, for the Lord had redeemed all men; and all men should have eternal life.”
Nehor’s doctrine echoed Lucifer’s plan to “redeem all mankind, that not one soul shall be lost.” Lucifer sought to thwart the heavenly father’s plan by eliminating our opportunity to act independently. Satan’s rejected proposal was founded on coercion, making all God’s sons and daughters his puppets. Christ presented his father’s plan, ensuring man’s agency, and declared that his will be done, and “the glory be his forever.” (Moses 4:1–2).
Referring to Lucifer’s rejected plan, the father declared, “Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, I caused that he should be cast down.” Ever since, Lucifer has sought “to deceive and to blind men and to lead them captive, even as many as would not hearken” unto God’s voice (Moses 4:3–4).
Our mortal experience permits us to taste “the bitter, that we might know to prize the good” (Moses 6:55). In learning, repenting and growing, we act for ourselves, overcome evil and demonstrate our ability to live a celestial law.
Our life on earth requires accountability for our choices. Choice requires law and predictable outcomes. If actions don’t have fixed consequences, then we have no control over outcomes, and choice is meaningless.
The Atonement of Jesus Christ allows us to recover from bad choices and the impact others have upon us. All injustice is redressed that we may be made whole. And to be made holy, we need a savior.
God cannot be arbitrary in saving us. He must be just. If he is not just, he is not God. Therefore, salvation and exaltation can only be accomplished by upholding and conforming to immutable law, to justice. God has upheld justice by providing a savior who understood that justice and mercy would be required if his brothers and sisters were to progress. The father’s plan does not coerce and dominate us but frees and lifts us that we might “be above all” and “have all power” with the father (D& C 132:20).
The savior balances justice and mercy. He saves us from our sins and redeems us from the fall. His atonement permits us to overcome spiritual and physical death and opens the door to immortality and eternal life.
