Now, to understand how mercy works,
we need to look at the special and unique nature
of the Savior.
Born as the Son of a divine Father
and the child of Mary, a mortal mother,
Jesus was subject to pain, temptation, and death.
Yet because He was the Only Begotten
Son of our Father in Heaven, He inherited from His Father
the capacity to endure infinite pain,
the ability to live a perfect life, and power over death.
Let's think of Jesus in terms of God's justice.
First, not once did He ever violate God's law.
Therefore, justice was satisfied.
Jesus was the only man who could be saved on His own merit
alone.
Contrast the Savior's life with the rest
of mankind, who have sinned.
For us, payment is required to balance the scales
for the things we've done wrong.
Making that payment involves misery and suffering.
Second, not only did Jesus never violate the law;
He offered to be punished for every sin ever committed.
He said, in effect, "Punish me as
though I were guilty of all wrongs ever committed."
Since Jesus has suffered for all sin,
He can extend mercy to each of us.
Mercy makes it possible to avoid the suffering and misery
that justice requires if we repent.
Our Father in Heaven loves us.
But even so, He cannot ignore the violations of the law.
That would not be just.
And because He is God, He must be perfectly just.
Justice must be satisfied.
But in His infinite mercy, God provided a way
to satisfy the demands of justice.
In the garden and on the cross, the Savior
suffered and died for our sins.
In other words, He paid the full penalty.
Now God's mercy can redeem us.
This is what Jesus Christ did for us.
This is what the Father did for us.
Through the merciful grace of God and His Only Begotten Son,
we can be saved if we are willing to meet the conditions
given by the Father and Son.
"For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all,
that they might not suffer if they would repent."