Redeemed Through His Righteousness

The entire Book of Mormon can be viewed as a grace sandwich. The missionary discussions in that day consisted of three lessons--Creation, Fall, and Atonement, what Elder Bruce R. McConkie would term the three pillars of eternity.

The first prophet to write, setting aside the Jaredite record, was Lehi, and the last prophet to write was Moroni. Moroni writes,

"Behold, he created Adam, and by Adam came the fall of man. And because of the fall of man came Jesus Christ, even the Father and the Son; and because of Jesus Christ came the redemption of man" (Mormon 9: 12).

The three pillars, Creation, Fall, and Atonement, are well summarized in this passage. You may notice Hebrew parallelism in the style, emphasizing the eternal progression of these elements. The words and phrases are doubled up and repeated, so you have Adam, fall of man, and Jesus Christ repeated twice in succession. 

Lehi introduces this theme in beautiful, elaborate form. So the Book of Mormon begins and ends with this message of eternal salvation. Sandwiched in the middle are numerous teachings by Ammon, Aaron, and others emphasizing Creation, Fall, and Atonement (see Alma 18 and 22 for example).

And central to this doctrine is the Atonement of Jesus Christ with the absolute reality of our fallen state and need for a Savior to redeem us. Aaron said, "And since man had fallen he could not merit anything of himself; but the sufferings and death of Christ atone for their sins, through faith and repentance, and so forth; and that he breaketh the bands of death, that the grave shall have no victory, and that the sting of death should be swallowed up in the hopes of glory; and Aaron did expound all these things unto the king" (Alma 22: 14).  

Notice how Lehi teaches these three pillars in order in 2 Nephi chapter 2 with the following phrases:

Creation

"Wherefore, it must needs have been created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation" (v. 12).

"And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon" (v. 13).

"For there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon" (v. 14).

Fall

"And I, Lehi, according to the things which I have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven; wherefore, he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God" (v. 17).

"And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind" (v. 18).

Atonement

"And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given" (v. 26).

His Merits

According to these passages, the Fall began with Lucifer, not with Adam and Eve. And even our agency is a gift of the Atonement.

The gravity of our fallen state is made crystal clear in these verses, as Lehi teaches his son, Jacob, "Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise (2 Nephi 2: 8).

There is no flesh that can dwell in God's presence based on our own merits. I happen to know as a recovering alcoholic and addict just where my own merits landed me. I'm certain I would not be alive today without His grace.

Even a righteous prophet like Jacob is not exempt. Lehi begins these teachings with a statement about Jacob's redemption by saying, "Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer" (2 Nephi 2: 3).

For many years I was one of those beings who was "acted upon." Captivity, death, and misery were not mere choices; they became my way of life. But today, by His grace, I am privileged to choose.