The importance of the Savior to me has been highlighted by three events that have been a big part of my life.
The first was my conversion to the gospel and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My parents, my two younger siblings and I were not active in any church, nor did we have any signs of religious behavior such as prayer or scripture reading in our home.A neighbor who had been converted to the gospel taught us the logical need to believe in a God as Creator. We felt the Spirit and began our quest of the Savior. It changed our lives. Profanity had thoughtlessly been used on the farm, and we realized more reverence was due the sacred names of Deity. A study of the scriptures revealed the doctrine that we are brothers and sisters of Jesus from the spirit world. The fact of an eternal relationship existing and the desire to follow His example helped to shape my life, and the members of my family, forever.
The second aspect that had a profound effect on me was serving as a missionary for two years and going out in the world as a member of the Church. Being a witness to the conversion process in others showed again the power of the Savior in the lives of people. Later in life, my wife and I had the opportunity to travel around the world. Though we met many wonderful people, there was an obvious lack of hope and understanding of life's purpose among many when the discussion turned to this subject. Seeing the beauty of the earth and experiencing the animal life in two areas of the world (Kenya and the Galapagos Islands) reminded me of the peacefulness of Eden and the potential of the millennium under the Savior's rule. It helped me remember the reality of the Fall and the need for the Atonement and the plan to return to our Heavenly Father's peace by living the gospel.
The third aspect of my life's experience that has had a great impact upon me and my appreciation of the Savior has been my teaching opportunities. Ten years of full-time seminary teaching and 28 years in institute have allowed me to become well-acquainted with many wonderful minds and spirits. I have seen some who seem to enjoy rebelling against eternal principles and thus set themselves up as the determiner of which laws to make for themselves and deny their Heavenly Father's role as Lawgiver. They also deny themselves the guidance and comfort of the Redeemer for us. It has always been an inspiration to me to see the benefit of the gospel of Christ to Latter-day Saint students, in comparing them to their peers at some of the finest universities in the world. The self-assurance that comes from realizing they are children of our Heavenly Father and potential joint heirs with Christ helps them through the turbulent times of college and graduate schools where the competition and pressure to succeed are great.
One of the doctrines that intrigued me early in life was that of the premortal life and the plan of salvation that was introduced to all of us there. This is a unique truth that is missing from the philosophies and theologies of the majority of the world. This information gives us additional insight and knowledge to help us fulfill our potential during our life on this earth. There is a need for all spirit children to obtain a physical body, and then for most to be further tested in a world of temptation to rebel, or to remain faithful and obedient to our Heavenly Father and to be able to return to His presence with exalted and resurrected bodies. The Savior played a very important role in this program as revealed clearly in Abraham 3:22-28.
Elder James E. Talmage describes the importance of this event on page 9 of his book Jesus the Christ:
"In that august council of the angels and the Gods, the Being who later was born in flesh as Mary's son, Jesus, took a prominent part, and there He was ordained of the Father to be Savior of mankind. As to time, the term being used in the sense of all duration past, this is our earliest record of the Firstborn among the sons of God; to us who read, it marks the beginning of the written history of Jesus the Christ."
There are a number of references to this event in the New Testament. Jude 6 refers to the one-third of the spirits in heaven who "kept not their first estate" and were therefore cast out. Rev. 12:7 informs us of the activity of Michael fighting Satan or "the dragon." Verse 9 reports the result that Lucifer or Satan with his followers (the third referred to in Jude) were cast out into the earth. (See John 1:1-3.)
As previously indicated, the Savior was foreordained to His calling to be our example and Redeemer. 1 Pet. 1:19-20 states, "But with the precious blood of Christ as a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you."
The Savior Himself testified of His pre-mortal life and position of eminence: "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me." The fact that He was sent is repeated in the following two verses and again implies that He was in the heavenly realms in order to be sent from our Heavenly Father's presence. (John 6:38.) He also referred to Himself as being "the living bread which came down from heaven." (v. 51.) John also records the response of Jesus to the Pharisees during a lengthy exchange when He told them, "Before Abraham was, I am." (John 8:58.) It is obvious that Jesus' mortal birth was nearly two thousand years after Abraham, and therefore this must be referring to a spirit life before mortality. Thus we see a number of instances where the Savior bore testimony of His own pre-mortal existence.
The presence of all of us at the grand council in heaven is testified to by the Prophet Joseph Smith when he said: "At the first organization in Heaven we were all present, and saw the Savior chosen and appointed and the plan of salvation made, and we sanctioned it." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 181.)
The understanding that we are spiritual brothers and sisters of the Savior and chose to follow Him in the premortal world is important to our vision of life. Also the fact that He was the Creator of not only this world, but many others, is awesome to contemplate. Joseph Fielding Smith declared: "Under the direction of His Father, Jesus Christ created the earth. No doubt others helped Him, but it was Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, who, under the direction of His Father, came down and organized matter and made this planet, so that it might be inhabited by the children of God." (Doctrines of Salvation 1:74.)
Thus it is, through my experiences in life, my reading of the scriptures and being taught by the prophets of the latter days, that I have grown to love and appreciate the Savior of the universe as my personal model of life, and the Mediator to help me return to my Heavenly Father.