Christ was only partially mortal though. You or I would not have been able to do what he did.
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True, that is a good point as well. Nobody else would have been able to atone and die for us. That is why I find it to be such a good thing that he accomplished his mission in life. It is by him that we, too, can be saved.
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Luke 23:34-43
The Savior offers us hope and forgiveness. What have we to learn from Christ’s example in his final hours? How is Hope freeing? How can forgiving others free us?
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Thank you for keeping this thread going. Not getting to mass right now while being at rehab has not been what I wanted for myself but I’m grateful for you taking the time to do this.
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Absolutely. I’ll keep posting as long as people appreciate or feel like they are benefitting from it.
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I very much appreciate it. Thank you
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Had to study this one a bit to come up with something to share back haha. Thanks for the opportunity to grow 
I find it very interesting to read that, at the end of these scriptures, the thieves who hang with him talk to Jesus and Jesus gives them a bit of hope and forgiveness even though he is hanging there as well. I thought for a bit on this, and then made a connection I thought was worth sharing.
Christ truly knows each of us, and he would truly know these two people as well. He had attoned for the sins of each of us, and these two individuals would have been on that list, as well. Christ is giving Hope to the hopeless! We also see that his atonement and saving powers reach beyond the grave; that Christ can see beyond the cross. And if he can do that for those two at that time, he can also do the same things for us in our time.
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Oh, I guess I didn’t exactly answer the question still haha 
We can follow the example Jesus Christ has set for us. As we forgive others of their trespasses, Christ can forgive us of our trespasses. Truly forgiving others as he has to us would free us in similar ways for our own mistakes. At the very least, we can be more grateful for things we have been forgiven for - knowing how it feels to seek forgiveness so deeply and how hurt we have been when giving forgiveness ourselves.
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I recently read to the part in The New Testament in the Bible about the apostle Thomas not beleiving in Christ’s resurrection without seeing (John 20:19–29).
I guess that I have always had a hard time with this myself: I find that I can often be like Thomas and lack faith. I am not seeking sympathy in any way, but rather I am trying to humbly acknowledge a weakness in an effort to strengthen it. Perhaps there are others, like me, who are working on this as well.
So, today, I think I wish to ask this question for a discussion: What are some ways that you strengthen and use your faith?
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Thanks! Yesterday was pretty disjointed and I totally spaced it.
I think I’m frequently faithless in that I feel like theres no guidance for myself and it all depends on me. It requires me being humbled frequently to realize that God has control over my life and doesnt want me to suffer. He let’s me suffer, but then saves me so I can be reminded that he’s there.
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I pray pray and pray some more throughout the day. I’ve started to reach out to people who are strong in their faith and ask questions again, just to understand more for myself.
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All of these seem like solid advice worth personally applying. Thank you for being so open to the discussion question for me!
I try to look back on the day and see what I could do better at, and then be committed to the change. But I also find I can be my own worst critic and tear myself down if I’m not careful. These suggestions are good ones I plan to honestly try out. Thank you, again
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Acts 2:22-47; 3:13-26; 4:5-12
There is a simple formula to follow as taught by Christ and his Apostles in order to access the power of the Atonement of the Savior, and to return to live with our Father in Heaven. This is
- Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ
- Repentance
- Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins
- The laying on of hands for the Gift of the Holy Ghost
- Endure to the end
How is continual progression vital in our path in this life? Why is it not enough to just ‘not do bad things’?
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If I have learned anything from my addiction, personally at least, it is that I need a change of heart to get things back on the track I would like it to be on. Each time I simply stopped doing the bad things, but failed to address other things (why I was doing them, situations that encouraged me to behave in the bad way, etc.), I would find myself back in the behavior I didn’t want. Continually progressing towards where we want to go involves changing my heart and staying true to things I know I need to do. As I do these things, I find that the behavior I wish to stop slows down and becomes more manageable.
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Awesome. I like to compare our eternal progression to a line that has two extremes. One side, the exaltation of Christ, and the other the damnation of Satan. We are constantly moving toward one of these points on the line, but cannot just stand still on it, otherwise we backslide.
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Acts 9
If anyone seemed like an unlikely candidate for conversion, it was probably Saul—a Pharisee who had a reputation for persecuting Christians. So when the Lord told a disciple named Ananias to seek out Saul and offer him a blessing, Ananias was understandably hesitant. “Lord,” he said, “I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints” (Acts 9:13). But the Lord knew Saul’s heart and his potential, and He had a mission in mind for Saul: “He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15). So Ananias obeyed, and when he found this former persecutor, he called him “Brother Saul” (Acts 9:17). If Saul could change so completely and Ananias could welcome him so freely, then should we ever consider anyone an unlikely candidate for change—including ourselves?
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I like this a lot! I personally don’t think I’ve gone as far away as Saul did, so if he could change, why couldn’t I? We each have opportunities to join the gospel, and that we can repent from our previous wrong doings no matter how much we have gone away. Conversion is possible for everyone.
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There is no sin that Christ has not atoned for. There’s no amount or depth of sin that Christ cannot reach down and pull us up out of.
On the other side of things, there is no addict that cannot change. No addict that cannot gain control of their life and turn it into something grand. Each of us has infinite worth and infinite ability to achieve great things.
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Acts 17:16–34
“We are the offspring of God.”
In Athens, Paul found a people of diverse opinions and religious views. They were always seeking “to hear some new thing,” and what Paul had to offer was definitely new to them (see Acts 17:19–21). They worshipped many gods, including one they called “the unknown God” (Acts 17:23), but they believed that the gods were powers or forces, not living, personable beings, and certainly not our Father. Read what Paul said to help them come to know God, and note the characteristics of God that you find. What does it mean to you to be the “offspring of God”? (Acts 17:29). In your opinion, how is being a child of God different from being just one of His creations? If you had stood beside Paul as he was testifying, what would you have told the ancient Greeks about our Heavenly Father? Do you know someone who could benefit from hearing your testimony?
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Thank you. A lot to think about and write about for myself with your questions. Again always appreciative of your Sunday Scriptures.
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