The Sacrament

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The Sacram ent The Sacram ent R em inds U s of Christ’s Suffering “Our Father in heaven … loved his Son, Jesus Christ, better than Abraham ever loved Isaac, for our Father had with him his Son, our Redeemer, in the eternal worlds, faithful and true for ages, standing in a place of trust and honor, and the Father loved him dearly, and yet he allowed this well-beloved Son to descend from his place of glory and honor, where millions did him homage, down to the earth, condescension that is not within the power of man to conceive. He came to receive the insult, the abuse, and the crown of thorns. God heard the cry of his Son in that moment of great grief and agony, in the garden when, it is said, the pores of his body opened and drops of blood stood upon him, and he cried out: ‘Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me.’ … “… His Father looked on with great grief and agony over his Beloved Son, until there seems to have come a moment when even our Savior cried out in despair, ‘My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?’ ” “In that hour I think I can see our dear Father behind the veil looking upon these dying struggles until even he could not endure it any longer; and, like the mother who bids farewell to her dying child, has to be taken out of the room, so as not to look upon the last struggles, so he bowed his head, and hid in some part of his universe, his great heart almost breaking for the love that he had for his Son. Oh, in that moment when he might have saved his Son, I thank him and praise him that he did not fail us, for he had not only the love of his Son in mind, but he also had love for us. I rejoice that he did not interfere, and that his love for us made it possible for him to endure to look upon the sufferings of his Son and give him finally to us, our Savior and our Redeemer. Without him, without his sacrifice, we would have remained, and we would never have come glorified into his presence. And so this is what it cost, in part, for our Father in Heaven to give the gift of his Son unto men.” (Melvin J. Ballard, Sermons and Missionary Services of Melvin Joseph Ballard, comp. Bryant S. Hinckley [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1949], pp. 153–55)

W e Should R em em ber the Covenants W e H ave M ade I need the sacrament. I need to renew my covenant every week. I need the blessing that comes with and through it. I know that what I am talking about is true. I bear witness to you that I know that the Lord lives. I know that He has made this sacrifice and this atonement. He has given me a foretaste of these things. … “I know that He lives, and I know that through Him men must find their salvation, and that we cannot ignore this blessed offering that He has given us as the means of our spiritual growth to prepare us to come to Him and be justified. … “Go to the sacrament table. Ah, that is a blessed privilege that I now rejoice in, and I would be ashamed, I know, … to stand in His presence and try to offer any apology or any excuse for not having kept His commandments and honored Him by bearing witness, before the Father and before men, that I believe in Him, and that I take upon me His blessed name, and that I live by and through Him spiritually.” (Melvin J. Ballard, Crusader for Righteousness [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1966], pp. 138–39)

The Sacram ent Service R equires A ctive Participation “If we approach the sacrament each week in the attitude of actively bringing a personal, specific offering— a humble promise to conquer a weakness that is separating us from the Savior—the sacrament will take on an infinitely richer meaning in our lives. Our relationship to Christ will grow and deepen as we make and keep such promises, and thereby progress in honoring our sacramental covenants.” (W. Cole Durham, Jr., “The Sacrament and Covenant-Making,” Ensign, Jan. 1978, p. 46)

“To make a covenant with the Lord to always keep His commandments is a serious obligation, and to renew that covenant by partaking of the sacrament is equally serious. The solemn moments of thought while the sacrament is being served have great significance. They are moments of self-examination, introspection, selfdiscernment— a time to reflect and to resolve.” (Howard W. Hunter, in Conference Report, Apr. 1977, p. 34; or Ensign, May 1977, p. 25)

A m azed It was a normal Sunday, just like any other, and my family and I went to church. Sacrament meeting started, and as I sat there my mind wandered. It felt so good to be there with my family, and I had a really warm feeling of comfort. The sacrament hymn that day was “I Stand All Amazed.” I began singing: I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me, Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me. I tremble to know that for me he was crucified, That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died. (Hymns, no. 193) When we came to the chorus, I started crying. My lips trembled, and the tears ran down my face. Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me enough to die for me! Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me. I couldn’t even finish the hymn; I just put my head down as silent sobs shook my body. And then, all of a sudden, I felt something I had never felt before. It was complete happiness and gratitude for my Savior. I looked at the sacrament table and realized how wonderful the sacrament really is. It had become real to me. Jesus died for me! He suffered for my sins in the Garden of Gethsemane. He suffered for every one of us. He suffered so much pain that he bled from every pore, and he did it willingly. Through all of his suffering, his heart was filled with love for us, and even for those who wronged him. What a great and perfect example. He did all of this because he loves me, and he knows me. Before then, I wasn’t really sure if the Savior loved me or knew me. But all at once I knew. Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me, enough to die for me! Oh it is wonderful, wonderful to me. (Melissa Ransom, “Amazed,” New Era, Jul 1998, 9)