He is Risen: John the Beloved's Witness of the Resurrection- Light Love and Mercy

The Son, even on the cross,
Showed the way for all to see
That our souls need not be lost
He is light, love, and mercy

He sees the bigger picture
Beyond every sorrow and pain
He calls to hearts to assure
The repentant have peace to gain

In His intense suffering
He paid the price for sin
He leads the way offering
Eternal life with Him

He Is Light Love and Mercy

Verse 1] The Son, even on the cross, Showed the way for all to see That our souls need not be lost He is light, love, and mercy [Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Calling every heart by name Through the sorrow, through the pain His forgiveness stays the same He is light, love, and mercy [Verse 2] He sees the bigger picture Beyond every sorrow and pain He calls to hearts to assure The repentant have peace to gain [Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Calling every heart by name Through the sorrow, through the pain His forgiveness stays the same He is light, love, and mercy [Verse 3] In His intense suffering He paid the price for sin He leads the way offering Eternal life with Him [Bridge] When the road is hard to follow When the past will not let go Turn your heart toward His promise There is peace for you to know [Final Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Calling every heart by name Through the sorrow, through the pain His forgiveness stays the same He is light, love, and mercy Eternal life with Him [Outro] Light, love, and mercy Eternal life with Him

Light Love and Mercy

Verse 1] The Son, even on the cross, Showed the way for all to see That our souls need not be lost He is light, love, and mercy He sees the bigger picture Beyond every sorrow and pain He calls to hearts to assure The repentant have peace to gain [Pre-Chorus] In His intense suffering He paid the price for sin Still He stands, still He saves And leads us back again [Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Light, love, and mercy He is light, love, and mercy Eternal life with Him [Verse 2] In the shadow of the cross Grace was written in His wounds Every shame and every loss Met the dawn that broke too soon When the guilty turn and come He does not turn them away Open arms and open sky Promise mercy for today [Pre-Chorus] In His intense suffering He paid the price for sin Still He stands, still He saves And leads us back again [Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Light, love, and mercy He is light, love, and mercy Eternal life with Him [Bridge] Show us how to kneel Show us how to rise At the foot of mercy Where the old life dies [Chorus] He is light, love, and mercy Light, love, and mercy He is light, love, and mercy Eternal life with Him

mercy: compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm.

Clarion Call- Console Death

 

[Verse 1]

At a cemetery I oft visit For contemplating life I found a bench to sit And ponder death and strife Adorning the weathered tombstones Family names were mostly Swiss Pioneers buried long ago When there was little food to subsist Trials surrounding harvests never ceased They worked hard all their lives Now buried, they did rest in peace Their legacy... sacrifice [Chorus] This is the clarion call of Christendom Promising resurrection and peace Surpassing understanding... God's wisdom Providing universal hope for increase [Verse 2] Feeling tender emotions My thoughts went afar to France Where in war's cauldron of commotion Lives were cut short in an instant I reflected on shattered dreams, Unfulfilled hopes, grief stricken hearts On the sorrow that death brings Of lost loved ones...a lone tear starts Thinking back to when I was a Bishop At the bedside of a young man Harrowed between life and the great beyond Pleadingly...he took my hand Looking in my eyes, he said Bishop, I know I'm soon to die. He asked what happens...and I read How we are taken home...unto paradise [Verse 3] For the righteous will be received Unto a state of happiness, A state of rest, a state of peace Freed from sorrows and what troubles us This young father of two Closed his eyes... never again to open And after saying thank you Slipped away to that place of which we'd spoken Each...having come here to earth To live, learn, and progress Just as surely, came with that birth Uncertainty and need for rest [Bridge] The victory over the tomb Was best described in Luke Both Marys came with perfume But found angels when they looked Appearing in shining garments One of the two said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead He is not here, but is risen [Chorus] This is the clarion call of Christendom Promising resurrection and peace Surpassing understanding... God's wisdom Providing universal hope for increase

From “He Is Risen,” Liahona and Ensign, Apr. 2003, 2–7.

Wherever I travel, I try to pay a visit to the town cemetery. It is a time of contemplation, of reflection on the meaning of life and the inevitability of death. In the small cemetery in the town of Santa Clara, Utah, I remember the preponderance of Swiss names which adorn the weathered tombstones. Many of those persons left home and family in verdant Switzerland and, in response to the call “Come to Zion,” settled the communities where they now “rest in peace.” They endured spring floods, summer droughts, scant harvests, and backbreaking labors. They left a legacy of sacrifice.

Alma 40:
11 Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection—Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.
12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

Luke 24:2-6
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher.
3 And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but is risen...

From Birth to Rebirth- Jesus

 

Yes, more than 2,000 years ago
Christ, our Savior; as promised, was born
Mortal...as a babe to grow
Perfectly, so we might be reborn

There is very little written of His boyhood
Save He increased in wisdom and stature
Gaining favor, as He went about doing good
The son of the Father lived pure

He was baptized by John in the river Jordan
Called forth apostles, testified, and healed-
A man of miracles to all before Him
That ancient prophecy might be fulfilled

He provided a perfect example and taught us
Even as His mortal mission drew to a close
Giving the last supper with His Apostles
Then.. onto Gethsemane and Calvary, He arose

No mere mortal can conceive the full import
Of what Christ did for us on that night
He Himself said He suffered and bled at every pore
Both in body and spirit- to the fullest height

Following this agony...drained of strength
He was seized by rough, crude hands to stand accused
Cursed, spat upon, and crowned with thorns of cruel length
Blood coursed His face as He was scourged and abused

His flesh tore from bones and sharp metals
Ripping Him with striking blows repeatedly
For any other this would have proved fatal
As He, racked with pain, was mocked heatedly

Then, He walked to Calvary...the way not foreign
With stumbling steps, He carried His own cross
Till another shouldered the burden for Him
When He could go no further... His strength lost

Finally, on this hill, for all to see
While His helpless followers looked on
His wounded body was nailed...what humility
For His enemies were not yet gone

He was mocked, cursed, and derided
Yet He cried out, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do"
Then His spirit, to God, He commended
And the serenity of death freed Him, unto the Father's presence, too

At that last moment, the Master could have turned back
But He did not. He passed beneath all things that He might save
He doing for us, alone, when our own strength we lack
That a path to the Father might be paved

Hurriedly...gently, His body
Was placed in a borrowed tomb
No words of Christendom have more meaning
Than were said to Mary when she came with perfume

Spoke by the angel: "Why seek ye the living among the dead?"
"He is not here... but is risen"
Thus answering the question Job posed centuries ahead
If a man die....yes, he shall live again!

We can take comfort in our hour of deepest need
In the sure knowledge that soon...will come the day
When God shall wipe away all tears, that no man weep
For there'll be no more death or sorrow...as these shall pass away

He Is Risen!
President Thomas S. Monson
Ensign, November 2010,

Revelations 21: 4
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Job 14:14
"If a man die, shall he live again?"

He is Risen: John the Beloved's Witness of the Resurrection (+playlist)

Jesus is risen
In glory and light
We can be with Him
Come. Heed His invite

He Is Risen

Let His words become a part of you
And you will know He is near
His message, ours to share and do,
Offers comfort and good cheer

His words become a part of me

And I know He is near

His message, is for sharing

For comfort and good cheer

The Darkness of Death

  The darkness of death, though ever real
Can be dispelled by the Lord, Jesus Christ
He, who has power over Earth to heal,
 Is the resurrection and the life
He Is Risen: A Prophet’s Testimony

"I believe that none of us can conceive the full import of what Christ did for us in Gethsemane, but I am grateful every day of my life for His atoning sacrifice in our behalf. ... The darkness of death can ever be dispelled by the light of revealed truth. ‘I am the resurrection, and the life,’ spoke the Master. ‘He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.’"

—President Thomas S. Monson, "He Is Risen: A Prophet’s Testimony", Liahona, Apr. 2012
Topics: Jesus Christ, Atonement

He Taught Us

He taught us how to live
He taught us how to die
He taught how to forgive
And pray to God on high

He passed beneath all things
When He could have turned His back
He served to save all things
Sacrificing in our behalf

None of us can conceive
The full import of what He did
But in truth, I believe
He knows us and He lives!

He Is Risen: A Prophet’s Testimony

Posted: 01 Apr 2012 08:00 AM PDT

"I believe that none of us can conceive the full import of what Christ did for us in Gethsemane, but I am grateful every day of my life for His atoning sacrifice in our behalf. At the last moment, He could have turned back. But He did not. He passed beneath all things that He might save all things. In doing so, He gave us life beyond this mortal existence. He reclaimed us from the Fall of Adam. To the depths of my very soul, I am grateful to [the Savior]. He taught us how to live. He taught us how to die. He secured our salvation."

—President Thomas S. Monson, "He Is Risen: A Prophet’s Testimony", Liahona, Apr. 2012
Topics: Jesus Christ, Resurrection

At a Cemetary I oft Visit

At a cemetery I oft visit
For contemplating life
I found a bench to sit
And ponder death and strife

Adorning the weathered tombstones
Family names were mostly Swiss
Pioneers buried long ago
When there was little food to subsist

Trials surrounding harvests never ceased
They worked hard all their lives
Now buried, they did rest in peace
Their legacy... sacrifice

Feeling tender emotions
My thoughts went afar to France
Where in war's cauldron of commotion
Lives were cut short in an instant

I reflected on shattered dreams,
Unfulfilled hopes, grief stricken hearts
On the sorrow that death brings
Of lost loved ones...a lone tear starts

Thinking back to when I was a Bishop
At the bedside of a young man
Harrowed between life and the great beyond
Pleadingly...he took my hand

Looking in my eyes, he said
"Bishop, I know I'm soon to die."
He asked what happens...and I read
How we are taken home...unto paradise

For the righteous will be received
Unto a state of happiness,
A state of rest, a state of peace
Freed from sorrows and what troubles us

This young father of two
Closed his eyes... never again to open
And after saying "thank you"
Slipped away to that place of which we'd spoken

Each...having come here to earth
To live, learn, and progress
Just as surely, came with that birth
Uncertainty and need for rest

The victory over the tomb
Was best described in Luke
Both Marys came with perfume
But found angels when they looked

Appearing in shining garments
One of the two said unto them,
"Why seek ye the living among the dead
He is not here, but is risen"

This is the clarion call of Christendom
Promising resurrection and peace
Surpassing understanding... God's wisdom
Providing universal hope for increase

From “He Is Risen,” Liahona and Ensign, Apr. 2003, 2–7.

Wherever I travel, I try to pay a visit to the town cemetery. It is a time of contemplation, of reflection on the meaning of life and the inevitability of death. In the small cemetery in the town of Santa Clara, Utah, I remember the preponderance of Swiss names which adorn the weathered tombstones. Many of those persons left home and family in verdant Switzerland and, in response to the call “Come to Zion,” settled the communities where they now “rest in peace.” They endured spring floods, summer droughts, scant harvests, and backbreaking labors. They left a legacy of sacrifice.

He is Risen
President Thomas S. Monson
Ensign, April 2010, 11

Alma 40:
11 Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection—Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.
12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

Luke 24:2-6
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher.
3 And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but is risen...

In a Humble Cottage- I Saw Pain and Need

In a small and humble cottage
Facing a windswept sea
The mother and the wife
Worried where their fisherman be

They had watched and waited
All the long night through
Till morn... the candle faded
As their faint hopes faded, too

At length, the night had passed
And reality set in
This journey was his last...
What comfort could be given?

I sensed the woman's heartache
As I, too, felt her grief
Her grieving heart did break
Ere, I spoke about belief

What seems a hopeless dawn, for her-
A crushing blow to end all dreams
For him, is but a journey yonder
Beyond a veil unseen

This time- of needing comfort
Must surely come to all
Our bodies we came to earth for
Have a date on which they'll fall

Many centuries ago
Inquired a man named Job
If a man die, shall he live again?
He dearly...he yearned to know

Job, once was blessed with every gift
Then lost it all...a tragic test
Though tried...his faith refused to drift
Seeking to know God became his quest

All is truly by design
Upon this earth we live in
There must be a grand designer...
And a purpose for our days given

God created the earth without form
A void...with darkness...deep
"Let there be light," He said. It was born
He, then, created the firmament... on this day we call three

Next, He separated the waters from the land
And said, "Let the earth bring forth grass,
The fruit tree yielding fruit after its kind,
whose seed is in itself," and...it came to pass

Day and night, He then created- the sun, the stars, the moon
And called forth the living creatures: unto birth
In the waters and upon the lands to roam
As fowls took wing above the earth

Last of all, He created man
In His own image- male and female
With dominion over all the land
With God-like capacity as well

Man alone received intelligence
Complete with a brain, mind, and soul
Endowed with tremendous attributes, hence
Given to inspiration, faith, and hope

Who could there be to persuasively argue
That mankind with such dominion and will
Would end without future avenues open
When they've been given so much to fulfill?

To understand the meaning of death
We must appreciate life's purpose
Our light of belief is dim at best
When we know not the plan or purchase

In the premortal world, we were sons and daughters
Of Heavenly Father who knew we would oft fall short
The nature of mortality is that we'll sin and falter
So, He gave a Savior, who'd atone and give us comfort

Yes, more than 2,000 years ago
Christ, our Savior; as promised, was born
Mortal...as a babe to grow
Perfectly, so we might be reborn

There is very little written of His boyhood
Save He increased in wisdom and stature
Gaining favor, as He went about doing good
The son of the Father lived pure

He was baptized by John in the river Jordan
Called forth apostles, testified, and healed-
A man of miracles to all before Him
That ancient prophecy might be fulfilled

He provided a perfect example and taught us
Even as His mortal mission drew to a close
Giving the last supper with His Apostles
Then.. onto Gethsemane and Calvary, He arose

No mere mortal can conceive the full import
Of what Christ did for us on that night
He Himself said He suffered and bled at every pore
Both in body and spirit- to the fullest height

Following this agony...drained of strength
He was seized by rough, crude hands to stand accused
Cursed, spat upon, and crowned with thorns of cruel length
Blood coursed His face as He was scourged and abused

His flesh tore from bones and sharp metals
Ripping Him with striking blows repeatedly
For any other this would have proved fatal
As He, racked with pain, was mocked heatedly

Then, He walked to Calvary...the way not foreign
With stumbling steps, He carried His own cross
Till another shouldered the burden for Him
When He could go no further... His strength lost

Finally, on this hill, for all to see
While His helpless followers looked on
His wounded body was nailed...what humility
For His enemies were not yet gone

He was mocked, cursed, and derided
Yet He cried out, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do"
Then His spirit, to God, He commended
And the serenity of death freed Him, unto the Father's presence, too

At that last moment, the Master could have turned back
But He did not. He passed beneath all things that He might save
He doing for us, alone, when our own strength we lack
That a path to the Father might be paved

Hurriedly...gently, His body
Was placed in a borrowed tomb
No words of Christendom have more meaning
Than were said to Mary when she came with perfume

Spoke by the angel: "Why seek ye the living among the dead?"
"He is not here... but is risen"
Thus answering the question Job posed centuries ahead
If a man die....yes, he shall live again!

We can take comfort in our hour of deepest need
In the sure knowledge that soon...will come the day
When God shall wipe away all tears, that no man weep
For there'll be no more death or sorrow...as these shall pass away

He Is Risen!
President Thomas S. Monson
Ensign, November 2010,

Revelations 21: 4
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Job 14:14
"If a man die, shall he live again?"