What is the atonement? It is the Lord’s sacrifice that changes everything for us. It started in the Garden of Gethsemane where the Savior bled from every pore, not only because of the weight of our sins, but also our burdens, sorrows, and all our infirmities. It ended upon the cross at Calvary where He died the most painful and cruel death at the hands of His own people. There has been no greater suffering than His. He paid the price for our souls so that, if we will, we can repent, be cleansed, and return to the Lord’s presence.

Jesus Christ was the only one who could perform such a sacrifice. Because He was sinless, He was not subject to spiritual death and because He is the Only Begotten Son of an immortal God, He had power over physical death. With His unique birthright, Jesus Christ’s Atonement brought to pass two gifts—the gift of immortality, which will be received by all, and the gift of eternal life, which can be accessed only through the condition of repentance.

Because He died, all of us will live again. Our bodies and spirits, which now can be separated by death, will one day be reunited again, to “die no more,” and we will become immortal beings. All who have ever lived on Earth will one day be resurrected—“both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous.” Every person you have ever loved and lost to death—grandparents, parents, siblings, spouses, children, friends—all will be able to be resurrected, and you will see them again. The Savior’s atonement takes away the sting of death, because it is no longer permanent.

The Savior’s Atonement also enables all those who believe in Him to be saved from sin and receive eternal life. It is important to note that Jesus Christ’s death does not automatically free us from our sins. In order for us to receive the gift of eternal life, we need to believe in Him and the healing power of the Atonement, repent of our sins, be baptized in His name, receive the Holy Ghost, follow His commandments, perform essential ordinances, and make covenants with the Lord.

With the Atonement centered on saving us from sin, one might think that it is only about healing us from sin. But the power of the Atonement has no bounds. It can heal us from all the pains that we will ever experience, comfort us in our sorrows, succor us in every suffering, and give us hope and peace during troubled times. It also gives us the strength to forgive those who have wronged us and show compassion to those in need. Because the virtue behind the Atonement is charity, which is the pure love of Christ, the power of the Atonement also increases our capacity to love like Christ.

Because of the Atonement, we can be assured that we never have to walk this life alone, that the Savior knows the depths of our sorrows and will send help to lift burdens off our shoulders, and that He knows whatever we are going through—good and bad.

The power of the Atonement is available to all those who reach out for the hand of the Savior with faith. When we do so, we will find that His hands are already stretched, reaching out to us with love.

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This season, through all of our various Christmas traditions, we commemorate one of the most momentous events in history, the Savior’s birth. Although often overlooked, here are two of the most important lessons we can learn from the story of His birth.

1. “BE IT UNTO ME ACCORDING TO THY WORD”

One of the many inspiring stories in the New Testament is how the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, informing her of her favored future, being able to give birth to our Savior.

We can imagine how overwhelmed Mary must have felt, or even how impossible it must’ve seemed; her task to carry the son of our Heavenly Father. However, “Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38)

Uttering the words, “be it unto me according to thy word” is a perfect display of faith and trust in our Heavenly Father despite feelings of fear and trouble that we sometimes feel throughout our lives. Mary’s acceptance of the angel’s words meant that she was willing to fulfill the role she was given no matter how difficult or impossible it might seem. Just like her, we each are designated roles to fulfill in this life. We can do all things if we place our faith and trust in His help, just as Mary did.

2. “AND THEY CAME WITH HASTE”

After the Savior was born, the shepherds responded immediately to the angel’s wonderful announcement of the birth of a savior who lay wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger.

At the time the angels appeared to the shepherds, they were watching their sheep. They could have made a range of excuses- “We can’t leave these sheep here. Someone else will have to watch them.” or “They didn’t specify tonight. We can always go tomorrow.” Even so, they didn’t find excuses or ways to wiggle out of their task.

“The shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem…which the Lord hath made known unto us…And they came with haste.” (Luke 2:15-16) The shepherds went right away, and found Joseph, Mary and the Savior. Because they went right away, they also received the blessings of their obedience right away.

“And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.” (Luke 2:20) Like the shepherds, we can also “come with haste” and respond to spiritual instructions we receive from promptings, our modern prophets and even the scriptures.

At this time of the year, we can choose to learn more about the Savior’s birth and the lessons that it can teach us. President Russell M. Nelson said, “This Christmas season, I hope that we are focused first upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Wise men still adore Him.”

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