The Messiah in the Restoration

 The Messiah

Prophesies of His coming

Fulfilment of these prophesies

The Messiah in the Restoration

The earliest comments about the coming of the Messiah relate to the time prior to the creation of the earth. Elohim, the Father of our spirits, presented His plan of salvation to us, which included the necessity of receiving a body, in order to become like Him, and ultimately return to our heavenly home to become divinely creative with Him in His presence. This furthermore included the inevitability of mistakes which would distance us from the ultimate goal of Eternal Life.

Payment by all who were subject to death by reason of sin, was clearly insufficient, so someone needed to be chosen to accept the task of living without sin in the face of extreme suffering to expiate for the universal load of sin, taking upon himself the infinite sin of the world, and voluntarily giving His life, and conquering death by freely taking up His life again and becoming the first to be resurrected.

Two offered themselves for the task. 

The firstborn spirit of our Father suggested “send me”, fully acknowledging the great gift of agency and free choice in order to make it possible for all of our Father’s children to return home. He was willing to make that infinite sacrifice, give His life and take it up again, while taking upon himself the sins of the world and suffering for all our transgressions, griefs, and carry our sorrows. The condition for making this sacrifice effective in our lives was accepting this offer through obedience and repentance by offering the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

The other offered universality of Eternal Life by removing the possibility of sin, eliminating choice and agency, with their concurrent opportunities for growth. For the universality of salvation, he demanded the glory and power of the Father. 

The Father spoke: “I will send the first”. Satan rebelled, and, because of that rebellion, and the ensuing war, was cast out with one third of the heavenly host who followed him.

Moses 4:1 -  4; Revelation 12:7 – 13; D&C 29:36

The first reference to the Savior in the scriptures, in the context of mortal life, is found in relating incidents in the garden of Eden following the fall. God tells Satan: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman,    between thy seed and her seed (Christ), and he shall bruise thy head. and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

Moses 4:21

After Adam and Eve are driven out of the Garden, they obediently build an altar and offer prayers and sacrifices. An angel teaches them the significance of the sacrifice as a “similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth.”

Moses 5:5 - 8