Christ is the Reason

As a college student, I am often surrounded by intellectuals who challenge the divinity of Christ, saying things like, 'He had good teachings, but he didn't intend for people to follow him'. In response to this line of thinking, I generally paraphrase this CS Lewis quote:

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, The MacMillan Company, 1960, pp. 40-41.)
I believe it's the responsibility of all believers to share the message of the divinity of Christ. Why? Jesus message of eternal life and happiness is true and his Divinity is an essential part of that message. Withou Jesus literaly being God, the plan of salvation would not work.

There are people out there who need the hope that Christ offers. We have a mandate from our Heavenly Father: Ezekiel 34:2-8

2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the ashepherds• of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds bfeed the flocks?

3 Ye eat the afat•, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.

4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was asick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with bcruelty have ye ruled them.

5 And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.

6 My asheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.

7 ¶ Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;

8 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the ashepherds bfed• themselves, and fed not my flock;

We must feed those in need both spirtually and physically. Why? This is an essential part of showing our love and serving the Savior directly. Notice the similar language in Jesus uses when talking to Peter in John 21:15-17:

15 ¶ So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, aFeed• my sheep.

17 He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, aFeed my bsheep.

Again, serving others, especially during this holiday season, is essential in showing our love for the Redeemer, whose birth we commemorate this season. He is the redeemer of the world, a man of sorrows, intimately acquainted with our grief, because upon Him was put on all our chastisement. Surely the least we could do is to share with those in need a portion of the infinite love He has shown to us.

There is a lot of talk in the Book of Mormon about Judgment Day. Specifically, I was reading in Mormon 9:1-3

These verses used to scare me out of my sneakers. But I don't feel that way about these verses anymore. The fear I had came from a lack of understanding of the atonement. Good saints should look forward to the judgment day. Not because they're perfect but because they're faithful. Not because they haven't sinned, but because they have repented.

Talking about the judgment day should be a joyous occasion. That's why Nephi, Mormon, and so many other prophets talk about it. Remember Mormon 9 is directed to those who do not believe in Christ. Look what he says to those in the House of Israel.

I remember having an investigator who misunderstood this doctrine to the point that he never joined the church. We need to remember, for those in the House of Israel, the saints, Judgment Day is truelly is a joyous occasion, or as Mormon puts it "a state of happiness which has no end".