Keywords

Sidney B. Sperry Symposium, doctrine of Christ, Jesus Christ

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The doctrine of Christ is a living, practical theology of discipleship (see 2 Nephi 31:21, Doctrine and Covenants 10:62). With the revelations given to Joseph Smith, particularly those in the Doctrine and Covenants, the faith of the Latter-day Saints is grounded in the realm of practical behavior— of religious life ordered for individuals and the Church by laws, principles, and, above all, covenants and ordinances given us by Deity. But all these point to Christ himself as the law. Clearly there are elements of correct belief or orthodoxy, but these are primarily useful because they point us to faith in Christ and establish how we come to him through covenants and ordinances. Indeed, the gospel law that we follow is more than a mere program for personal improvement or a set of moral imperatives; it is something that establishes us and keeps us in a living relation with a living being—our Lord Jesus Christ—who, if we will let him, will be the law that can govern, preserve, perfect, and sanctify us.