“I Am Jesus Christ”

When the Savior visited the Nephites and the Lamanites who were gathered at the temple in Bountiful after His death and resurrection, He introduced Himself concisely and powerfully. Before hearing this introduction, the people didn’t know what to think about what they were seeing. Afterwards, “the whole multitude fell to the earth” (3 Nephi 11:12).

What did He say which elicited this overwhelming response of reverence and wonder?

• “Behold, I am Jesus Christ.” He told them His name, the same name which had been revealed by Nephi, Benjamin, Alma, and Samuel. It’s fair to say that they recognized this name and knew instantly that He was not just an angel.
• “Whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.” This phrase placed His arrival in context. A man in a white robe descending from the sky might be unprecedented, but it was not unforeseen. Nearly 600 years earlier, Nephi had seen in a vision “the heavens open, and the Lamb of God descending out of heaven; and he came down and showed himself unto [Nephi’s descendants]” (1 Nephi 12:6). If they were familiar with this prophecy, then they had some basis for understanding what they were experiencing now.
• “And behold, I am the light and the life of the world.” This title was used by Abinadi (see Mosiah 16:9) and by the Savior Himself as these people sat in darkness not long before (see 3 Nephi 9:18). It must have had particular resonance for them, because they had recently experienced natural disasters which resulted in loss of life, followed by darkness so thick that “there could be no light” (3 Nephi 8:21). They must have been particularly attuned to their need for the two things He provides: light and life.

Next, He announced His atoning sacrifice, emphasizing three aspects of it:

• “And I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me.” In the garden of Gethsemane, He had pleaded with His Father, “Let this cup pass from me” (Matthew 26:39). It was really hard, and He willingly made the sacrifice.
• “And have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world.” God’s work and His glory is “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). We cannot be redeemed in our sins. (See Helaman 5:10.) Therefore, the Savior’s sacrifice to remove our sins contributed to His Father’s glory.
• “In the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.” He came to earth to do His Father’s will (see John 6:38), and in so doing, He showed us the way. As His disciples, we strive to emulate His meekness, subordinating our own desires to do the will of God.

Today, I will remember how Jesus Christ introduced Himself to the people at the temple at Bountiful. I will remember that He is the prophesied Savior, that He gives us light and life, and that He glorified His Father by willingly suffering on our behalf, so that we can be saved.