None Were with Him, by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
My purpose in writing about these general conference talks is fairly selfish: I hope that by actively looking for personal application, the various messages will be internalized and help me become who I want to become.
I want to share that I can feel the message of this talk in every experience of my life—that I've never abandoned, nor felt abandoned—but I cannot honestly do so. Nevertheless, after beautifully sharing those poignant moments at the end of Christ's mortal life, Elder Holland renewed my desires to never leave Him alone:
He has walked alone once. Now, may I ask that never again will He have to confront sin without our aid and assistance, that never again will He find only unresponsive onlookers when He sees you and me along His Via Dolorosa in our present day. ... May we declare ourselves to be more fully disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, not in word only and not only in the flush of comfortable times but in deed and in courage and in faith, including when the path is lonely and when our cross is difficult to bear.
With mixed emotions we consider Christ's perfect end to His perfect life. We face simultaneous overwhelming joy and gratitude, coupled with intense pain and sadness. We're reminded of the solitude, loneliness, and abandonment that Christ endured. Yet, as difficult as that is to accept (the Redeemer of the world being abandoned), hope emerges:
One of the great consolations of this Easter season is that because Jesus walked such a long, lonely path utterly alone, we do not have to do so. ... Trumpeted from the summit of Calvary is the truth that we will never be left alone nor unaided, even if sometimes we may feel that we are. Truly the Redeemer of us all said, “I will not leave you comfortless. [My Father and] I will come to you [and abide with you]” (John 14:18, 23).
I know that Christ wants to be with me; I hope to live so I can be with Christ.
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