Elder Richard G. Scott: 'He lives! All Glory to His Name!'

In his Easter morning general conference address, Elder Richard G. Scott characterized it as "that holy day designated throughout all Christendom to commemorate the victory of Jesus Christ over death."

"His Resurrection broke what to that point had been the unyielding chains of death," affirmed Elder Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve. "He opened the path whereby each of Heavenly Father's children born to earth would have the opportunity to rise from death to live again."

Elder Scott exclaimed, "How our Father in Heaven must have rejoiced that sacred day when His totally obedient, completely worthy Son shattered the chains of death." He asked, "What eternal purpose would our Father's plan of happiness have had except it be made alive through the infinite and eternal Atonement of His gloriously obedient Son? What eternal purpose would have come from the creation of the earth where intelligences tabernacled with spirits would receive a body if death were the end of existence and none would be resurrected? What a glorious moment that morning was for all who understood its significance."

Elder Scott said the Easter season should bring peace and joy to all who love the Lord and show it by obeying His commandments.

"Oh, how we all need that healing the Redeemer can provide," he said. "Mine is a message of hope based on principles embodied in the teachings of the Master Teacher Jesus Christ."

Church members can understand more fully the breadth and depth of healing provided by the Atonement, "because we have the fullness of His doctrine," Elder Scott said. "We realize that what He has willingly done with immense suffering and sacrifice will not only affect us in this life but throughout all eternity."

Elder Scott added, "Jesus administers the balance between justice and mercy conditioned upon our obedience to His gospel. He is the light for all mankind. He is the fountain of all truth. He fulfills all of His promises. All who obey His commandments will earn the most glorious blessings imaginable."

Elder Scott said he believes it is instructive to try to imagine what the Atonement required of both the Father and the Son. He listed three challenges the Savior faced:

"First, an enormous sense of responsibility, for He realized that except it be done perfectly, none of His Father's children could return to Him. They would be forever banished from His presence since there would be no way to repent for broken laws and no unclean thing can exist in the presence of God. ...

"Second, in His absolutely pure mind and heart, He had to personally feel the consequences of all that mankind would ever encounter, even the most depraved, despicable sins.

"Third, He had to endure the vicious attack of Satan's hordes while physically and emotionally pressed to the limit. Then, for reasons we do not fully know, while at the extremity of His capacity, at the time the Savior most needed succor, His Father allowed Him to shoulder the onerous responsibility with His own strength and capacity."

To watch this talk on video go to ksl.com.