Upon what principles and laws does the atonement operate?

How can God allow mercy without violating the demands of justice?

How might understanding the atonement of Christ benefit me in seeking to live the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life?

These are important questions with important answers. Those who fail to ask and receive answers to these questions are likely to fail in realizing and receiving the available blessings of the atonement in their lives.

The greater blessings of the atonement of Christ are entirely conditional. They require faith. They require strict obedience to the laws upon which such great blessings are predicated. That said, it is critical to realize that there exist strict laws, strict rules, and strict principles to be learned and carefully activated in order to receive such blessings.

Similar to a board game or card game, there are strict rules—no exceptions. That is just the way it needs to be. Without strict rules, the integrity and efficacy of the law would be hollow and meaningless. In short, faith and trust would be impossible. Law cannot be arbitrary. The rule of law is prime. Otherwise, there would only be chaos, disharmony, and evil. This would not be good.

Unfortunately, most people tend to oversimplify and thus entirely misunderstand the atonement of Jesus Christ. Many assume that the atonement is based on some type of quid pro quo negotiation. They assume that the atonement is simply a matter of so much suffering to pay the penalty for so much sin. Or they assume that it is based on the infinite power of an infinite God to make arbitrary decrees according to his infinite will. And worst of all, they tend to assume that the atonement of Christ arbitrarily pays the price for unrepented sin, without works, without faith, and without complete repentance. In short, they believe that the suffering of Christ allows mercy to somehow cheat justice and short-cut faith, not realizing that mercy is the product of justice, not the exception.

The atonement of Jesus Christ is entirely based on the laws of justice, the laws of restoration, and the laws of sacrifice. These laws have been explained and will continue to be clarified. But first, it needs to be understood that the atonement enables grace. Within the context of this discussion, I define grace as the availability of blessings that have not been earned by those to whom such blessings are offered.

Grace is never free. Someone always must pay the price for such blessings to be offered. This price typically includes hard work, obedience, sacrifice, suffering, and learning experiences. Inversely, this price invariably also includes suffering the consequences or viewing the consequences of failures to be obedient, failures to sacrifice, and failures to exert adequate faith.

Anyone with any goodness in their heart can offer grace to others with less than what they have. Fathers and mothers offer grace to their children. Righteous leaders and teachers offer grace to those they lead and teach. A man traveling a highway can offer grace to others in need by offering care and assistance according to the goodness in his heart and the utility he has available. Please pause to consider experiences you have had when others you met offered you grace. What prices were paid for those offerings and teachings? And how did they feel about what they were offering you?

The grace that Jesus offers us has been eternities in the making. In that sense, the atonement began a very, very, very long time ago, culminated in Calvary and on Golgotha, and continues from eternity to eternity.

Our work is the assimilation and dissemination of grace. We are to receive grace, be increased by grace by our faithfulness, and then similarly offer grace to others, as God, angels, and all agents of grace have done before. This is the life cycle of grace.

The assimilation and dissemination of grace is made possible by humility and love, respectively. Without humility, you are unlikely to heed and receive offerings of grace from others. Without love, in all its manifestations and forms, you will not have the compassion to extend grace to others.

Anytime grace is offered to us, it comes with an expiration date. That expiration date may be just a few seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, or years. As we receive and apply the grace that is offered, in obedience and faith, we are accordingly increased. As we reject grace by our blindness, hard-heartedness, and wickedness, we find that that grace is eventually withdrawn, the opportunity comes to an end, and it may be a very long while before similar offerings of grace may be made available again, and when they are, the effort required on our part will have invariably increased, not the least because of the unnecessary hardship we will have needlessly imposed on ourselves and those we could have blessed by our faithfulness.  This is a very important principle to understand and will be expanded upon in other books.

When we are offered grace, we have the opportunity to ascend by recreating ourselves into something better by incorporating the grace that is offered into our lives. As we ascend by our faithfulness, that grace becomes dormant as we become fully qualified for the blessings we are now receiving by our faithfulness. Remember, that grace is something we have not earned. Thus, as we earn it by capitalizing and incorporating the grace offered, it is no longer called grace, because it is now ours according to the rights of justice, by our obedience and faithfulness. Hence, by our faithfulness we become justified. In mercy we were offered grace; then by complete obedience and faithfulness, we become justified. Thus, grace does not cheat justice, but rather, enables our growth and development into something rewarded and empowered by justice, rather than being condemned by justice.

Justice is a two-edged sword. Either we can be justified blessed by our adherence to the law and faithfulness, or we can be condemned according to our rejection of the law, vanity, selfishness, and pride.

Mercy and grace give us the opportunity to increase in righteousness and become increasingly justified; but if we fail to increase, or we fail to utilize that mercy and grace, then we remain unjustified. It’s that simple.

The atonement of Christ enables grace, enables positive change, and enables us to receive and become something far better than what we currently are. Once that transformation goes nuclear, once we are fully activated as fully vested disciples of Jesus Christ, the grace of Christ becomes fully active in our lives. Once we flip the switch, once we become fully activated in Christ, then we find ourselves in a state where the Light of Christ is being channeled into our souls without the restrictions and resistance imposed by sin. This unrestricted channeling is sometimes called the Gift or Power of the Holy Ghost and is available to all those with faith in Jesus Christ, who have repented of their sins, have ceased sinning, and are fully vested in Christ.

To be vested in Christ is to take upon you the divine nature, character, and purpose of Christ. It is the product of faithfulness over time, becoming fulling invested in Him, with a maturation of Spirit, intelligence, and power from Him.

It is interesting to note that the full Gift and Power of the Holy Ghost is metaphorically and metaphysically electrical. Resistance decreases, voltage and amperage increase, capacitance increases, comprehension increases, functionality increases, and all our logistical abilities likewise increase. These compounded gifts and abilities are sometimes called the gifts of the spirit.

Those who pursue this path to the end, to the end of their lives and into eternity, will eventually find themselves fully justified by the laws of justice; grace and mercy will have done their work; and only justice will remain in great glory and perfection, unto the complete fulfillment of the law. Inversely, those who fail to get onto this path and stay on this path will unfortunately find themselves not justified by the law, but condemned by the law, and in many ways, it will be as if there had been no atonement made.

Now, let’s take a closer look at how the laws of justice function in relation to the atonement.

The law of justice clearly states that those who sin must be held accountable for their sins and suffer the penalties for broken laws. Accordingly, the law does not allow one man to suffer the penalties of broken laws for and in behalf of anyone else. There is no such thing as quid pro quo vicarious suffering for the sins of another in order to satisfy the demands of justice. Temporary intercession can be made, and justice can sometimes be delayed, but ultimately the price must be paid by the offenders if they cannot be eventually justified.  

The atonement of Jesus Christ was not a quid pro quo sacrifice. It was not a quid pro quo vicarious act. It was not so much suffering for so much sin, for and in behalf of someone else, or even all humanity. The laws of justice have no respect for quid pro quo sacrifices for sin, for and in behalf of others. We are all responsible for our own sins.        

11  Now there is not any man that can sacrifice his own blood which will atone for the sins of another.  Now, if a man murdereth, behold will our law, which is just, take the life of his brother?  I say unto you, Nay.

12  But the law requireth the life of him who hath murdered; therefore there can be nothing which is short of an infinite atonement which will suffice for the sins of the world.

13  Therefore, it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice…

14  And behold, this is the whole meaning of the law, every whit pointing to that great and last sacrifice; and that great and last sacrifice will be the Son of God, yea, infinite and eternal.

15  And thus he shall bring salvation to all those who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice, and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance.

16  And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption.

17  Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you. [1]

It has been established that the atonement of Jesus Christ was not a quid pro quo sacrifice; rather, it was an infinite and eternal sacrifice because it was done by an infinite and eternal God, even the Son of God, who is Jesus Christ. Only an infinite and eternal sacrifice can suffice. Quid pro quo does not suffice. Hence, the suffering He submitted to was infinite and eternal, and the guilt and anguish of soul He suffered for the sins of mankind was both infinite and eternal, in scope and in severity. He suffered for the sins of all mankind, even as if they had been His own. And not only that, He also suffered and experienced all of the pain, sorrow, misery, and despair of all humanity, to an infinite degree, that He might have perfect understanding and compassion for all humanity—that He might take upon Himself all of their suffering, pain, sorrow, misery, despair, and guilt—delivering them and healing them from all tribulations, all bondage, all sickness, all afflictions, and all things—in wisdom, mercy, and justice.

Keep in mind that the atonement of Jesus Christ began long before Jesus entered into Gethsemane. His experience, qualifications, knowledge, wisdom, compassion, and virtue began eternities before. Overcoming all things began long before he entered into this iteration of mortality. Jesus Christ has been overcoming all things for a very, very, very long time.

And looking forward, it is helpful to understand that His suffering and sorrow did not end on the cross, or with His resurrection. Jesus Christ was fully exposed to all the chaos, all the darkness, all the sin—and continues to be. It never goes away. But He has uniquely overcome all these things. He is not daunted by them. He is above them. He has achieved a fullness of joy in spite of them, become He knows of them and is infinitely above them, according to His righteousness and virtue, His infinite knowledge and understanding, and the honor that He has.

It is entirely beyond the scope of this chapter or this book to explore the long list of qualifications Jesus had in order to work out the atonement as the appointed Son of God and as the Only Begotten of the Father. Suffice it to say that He is the Eternal Father who is uniquely qualified to do what He has done and continues to do.

But, zeroing in on what He was and did in mortality, it needs to be understood that Jesus lived a perfect life, committing no sin, doing all things that He was commanded to do, doing the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.[2] As a perfect man, and as the Son of God, He was hyper-sensitive to even the smallest amount of guilt, the tiniest deviation from the will of the Father, and the most insignificant infraction of the law. Thus, He had hyper-sensitivity of conscience; and yet He it was who suffered for all the sins of mankind to an infinite degree, suffering the guilt for the violation of God’s laws from the beginning. And so the grief and sorrow and despair He experienced in taking upon Himself such an infinite degree of guilt was truly beyond any mortal comprehension.

Jesus Christ was and is an infinite and eternal God, having been obedient to all the commandments He had received, having overcome all things He had previously been given to overcome, up to but not including the atonement required of the Son of God. But now His time had come. And so He continued, completed and passed the test; thus, overcoming all things, and doing the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.

These conditions and qualifications uniquely enabled him to perform an infinite atonement[3], which would enable individuals who had sinned to repent, be redeemed, increase in righteousness, and be unified with God, and/or harmonized with the laws of God within appropriately specified spheres, according to their faithfulness.

The atonement of Christ is made possible by a covenant made between God the Father and God the Son, wherein the Son agreed to pay an infinite price by making an infinite sacrifice that would satisfy the demands of justice long enough to allow faith, repentance, and eventual justification through continued obedience and faithfulness. This opened a small window of opportunity, called mortality, wherein mankind could live mortal lives and be subject to mortal tests, allowing opportunities for advancement that are only available within in a mortal environment, wherein the demands of justice are attenuated and delayed. Those who grasp hold of the grace offered by their faithfulness are justified and exalted according to their degree of merit. Otherwise, they remain unjustified, and it is as if there had been no atonement made, except that they received the benefit of their mortal experience.

The atonement of Christ does not bypass or negate the demands of justice; it satisfies the demands of justice long enough to allow repentance.

Without complete repentance by repenting of all sins, and by receiving a remission of sin, which means to cease sinning, the demands of justice relative to sin cannot be satisfied. The demands of justice, as a consequence of a broken law, cannot be nullified or denied. It must be satisfied. Only perfect faith in Christ combined with perfect repentance, henceforth and forever, can satisfy the demands of justice.

The atonement of Christ activated the demands of mercy; for without mercy being extended, and a time for repentance granted, Jesus Christ would be robbed of His glory, having suffered innocently the demands of a broken law.

The demands of mercy necessitate the opportunity for repentance by virtue of the infinite sacrifice and infinite price paid by the infinite and eternal God, even Jesus Christ—who was and is innocent, who was and is infinitely loved, who was and is universally honored as the supreme deity, as the Son of God, because He has (again and again) proven himself true and faithful in doing the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.

The demands of mercy absolutely necessitate the availability of grace and mercy, the opportunity for repentance, the power of redemption, and the blessings of salvation according to the terms of the covenant between the Father and the Son. If the demands of mercy were ever unjustly denied, even in the smallest degree, both the Father and the Son would be denied of their glory, and their just reward, and they would be denied their rights as immutably established by law, as specified and legally established by the terms of the everlasting covenant. Such a thing would inexorably violate the demands of justice, for justice stipulates that the Father and the Son be rewarded for their faithfulness and the sacrifices they have made as stipulated and required by the law within the covenant.

Jesus Christ suffered for the sins of all mankind.

“Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit; and would that I might not drink the bitter cup and shrink. Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men.”[4]

Jesus Christ suffered, to an infinite degree, the guilt, misery, and pain of all mankind. Only the Son of God could endure such a thing for even a few seconds.[5] But this ordeal lasted many hours!

So great was His agony that the scriptures say He sweat great drops of blood.[6] He was bathed in blood as it came bursting from every pore. Covered in blood, and in the midst of that agonizing ordeal, an angel came to witness and to minister to Him; ministering, but not delivering.

As Jesus experienced all that He suffered, it was the infinite love He had in His heart for all of us, in combination with the perfect knowledge and understanding He had in His mind, that enabled him to overcome each successive wave of guilt, despair, nausea, misery, and pain.

His love for us was and is infinite and eternal. Additionally, His knowledge and confidence in the justness and goodness of the Father in allowing His infinite sacrifice to pay the price for sin and death, according to the terms of the law, carried Him through the agonizing ordeal in Gethsemane, in carrying the cross to Golgotha, and then suffering on the cross—scourged, shorn, stripped, pierced, and in the very greatest pain, far greater than can be imagined. It was His infinite love and perfect knowledge which enabled Him to complete all the requirements of this long-lasting, infinite, and eternal, atoning sacrifice.

Finally, as He hung on the cross, yet another wave of guilt, despair, nausea, misery, and pain flowed through Him, and at that moment, as a final test, and in order to completely qualify according to the terms of the covenant, the Father withdrew the Spirit of His presence from Him. Jesus was utterly divided from the presence of the Father. Such sorrow! Such cause for despair! Such loneliness! The chaos! The darkness! The evil He witnessed! But he was not unprepared. His love, light, and understanding pierced through, comprehended, and overcame all of it.

And in that moment, looking down upon His beloved mother and beloved brothers and sisters looking upward at his suffering, weeping and afraid at the foot of the cross, without Him to fully comfort them and reassure them, He received from deep inside of His soul, as a final endowment of love and determination, the strength to burst through this final bought of loneliness, despair, and pain, completely reconciled and willing to suffer for eternity if need be, whatever price might be required to save His beloved family; and thus, He completely overcame, alone, but in the infinite love and determination of His exalted soul, the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then, finally, having completed and accomplished all that was required to answer the ends of the law and the requirements of His covenant with the Father, He said, “It is finished.” And then, as he felt the presence of His loving Father return, He said. “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.” And then He died. Why?

By doing what He did, by suffering what He suffered, as one guiltless of any sin, and as an infinite and eternal God, having performed an infinite and eternal sacrifice, He is able to effectively plead the cause of all mankind before the throne of His Father, and the Father MUST submit to His pleas, granting mercy and justice according to the terms of the law and the terms of the covenant of the Father, otherwise, both the Father and the Son would be robbed of their glory and they would be robbed of the fruits of their labors, which thing would be an untenable violation of the law of restoration, and the laws of justice, and in particular the laws of justice that demand mercy. Almighty God cannot be robbed of these things—and cannot allow these supernal laws to be violated in even the smallest degree. And so, the power of the atonement of Christ remains infinitely and eternally efficacious into the eternities, from all eternity to all eternity, worlds without end.  

Jesus, who became the Christ, by faithfulness, obedience, and sacrifice, became the author of salvation, the finisher of our faith, the very messenger of the covenant, offering the hope of redemption, holding the keys of salvation, as the keeper of the gates of salvation, exaltation, and eternal lives. It is impossible to comprehend the staggering price He had to pay to receive the divine rights and powers and keys enabling Him to have power over all these things—it is impossible to comprehend these things without actually doing what He did. But the price He did indeed pay! And praise God for it!

Thus, it is, that all those who have faith in Jesus Christ, repent of all their sins, are baptized, receive the Holy Ghost, receive the testimony of the Father and of the Son, and endure to the end, these are they that receive salvation, exaltation, and eternal life. Those who fall short of this also receive limited redemptions, but to far lesser degrees, with inferior blessings and glories, according to whatever law and kingdom of glory they can abide.

As we increase in our faith in Jesus Christ, we are encircled about in the arms of His mercy, we are increasingly blessed and empowered by grace, and by so doing we are additionally enabled to manifest more and more faith—and that faith and the light that we receive through faith, becomes brighter and brighter until the perfect day!

---

[1] Book of Mormon | Alma 34:11-17

[2] Book of Mormon | 3 Nephi 11:10-11

[3] Atonement: a mechanism to receive “at-one-ment”, or be brought into unity, with God

[4] Doctrine and Covenants 19:18 – 19

[5] Book of Mormon | Mosiah 3:7

[6] Luke 22:44

Click here for Table of Contents