I think I need an "Atonement for Dummies" book rather than a book like this. I think the book itself was well-researched for sure and there were a lot of quotes - scriptural and otherwise - but I just have a hard time reading "textbooks" and do better with stories. There were a few stories throughout that made concepts relate-able and those were times when I was engaged and got something out of the book.

The first few chapters held my interest and were thought-provoking, but it took me so long to get through the rest of the book. I was so unmotivated to read it because I zoned out a lot. Maybe it's my current spirituality level and if I read it in the future I'll absorb and appreciate it more, but for today, it's just "okay" for me.

This is a heavy book - a serious subject matter treated seriously and reverently. I will admit up front that Callister's writing style is too wordy for my taste (LOTS of unnecessary adjectives!), but the message is important and clear. This is not a book you read for fun, it's a book you study and reference. I learned a LOT and I'm sure I'll be referring back to it regularly in preparation for talks/lessons at church and at home and in my own personal study. I recommend it to anyone who would like to have a deeper understanding of the Savior's Atonement.

This book deserves 10 stars! Now that I've finished reading and marking it, I feel that I should start all over again. It's truly amazing! Here is one of the author's closing paragraphs:

"One does not speak lightly of the Atonement or casually express his appreciation. It is the most sacred and sublime event in eternity. It deserves our most intense thought, our most profound feelings, and our noblest deeds. One speaks of it in reverential tones; one contemplates it in awe; one learns of it in solemnity. This event stands alone, now and throughout eternity."

I won't even pretend to be able to adequately express my feelings about this book. It's definitely one I'll be reading over and over, as it really helped to explain one of the most fundamental truths and acts ever completed in history, in a way that was much easier to follow and apply than other things I've read about the Atonement...... And there were still plenty of things over my head!

This book taught me more about the doctrine of the Atonement than I've ever learned in my entire life. It is heavy reading that required me time to ponder and internalize it. I feel like what I really understand about the Atonement could fit in a thimble, or maybe a dropper. This has enlarged my understanding, deepened my appreciation, left me humbled and eternally grateful to my beloved Savior for his infinite love, compassion and supreme sacrifice. It is a book I will continue to read over and over again because there is so very much to learn and understand. Anyone that wants to draw near to the Savior should read this book. You will never be the same after you finish it.

November, 2016: Just finished my second read-through of this profound, wonderful book. Again, so many eternal lessons that will stay with me. It has given me further personal meaning for reflection during my sacred time each Sunday when I partake of the emblems of my Savior's Atonement.

Wow! This is one of my new favorite books. I loved it so much and it had several ideas that I'd never considered.
Robert Millett in the introduction said, "Everything we do and everything we teach should somehow be anchored back to the atonement."
Some of the things I liked/learned:
*Satan's every move is to divert our attention and dilute our focus from the primary object of Christ's atoning sacrifice in hopes we will turn exclusively to doctrines of secondary and far less import.
*"With increased vision can come increased motivation."
*"We become like those things that we habitually study and admire."
*The Lord expects much more of us in our gospel study than previous dispensations because we have more tools available to us. The best farmer with a plow and horse can never keep up with the best farmer with a tractor at his disposal. The best Galileo with a handheld telescope can never discover the secrets of the universe like a Galileo with the telescopes now available. The best mathematician with a slide rule can never compete against the best mathematician with a computer at his fingertips.
*There are at least 3 principal purposes of the atonement: First, to restore ALL that was lost by the Fall of Adam. 2. To provide for the possibility of repentance. 3. To provide the power necessary to exalt us to the status of a god.
*Hugh Nibley said that the law leads us back home. The "at-one-ment" happens when we get there.
*One ness with God is not just a matter of geography but of identity. We don't just live with God, we become like God.
*There was something in the Savior's descent that made possible man's ascent.
*Two positives of the Garden of Eden became negatives after the Fall: in the garden they were in the presence of God and they were immortal. After the Fall, they experience physical and spiritual death...became mortal and left presence of God. HOWEVER, two negatives of the garden became positives after the Fall: in garden, they were innocent, knowing no good and evil and therefore could not receive joy. Also, they could not procreate. After the Fall, they could learn and grow and experience joy as they knew good from evil. And they could bear children and fulfill the measure of their creation.
*Two types of spiritual death: 1st, we were born into this world out of God's presence. This was caused by the Fall and is entirely rectified through the Atonement...all of us will return to God's presence to be judged by Him...therefore, Christ entirely overcame this effect of the Fall. But there is a second spiritual death...we are out of God's presence due to our individual sins. the Atonement makes up for this second spiritual death IF we repent...this part can only be overcome with our willingness. Each of us will return to God's presence, but it is up to us if we stay there. All that was lost in Adam is restored in Christ. Justice demands this.
*There is nothing any man can do to reject the saving powers of Christ. Every man will be resurrected and every man will return to God's presence. The second spiritual death is separate from, although related to, Adam's fall. So if we do not return and stay in our Father's presence, no blame can be placed on Adam and Eve...only on ourselves for not choosing to repent.
*The atonement is infinite in at least 9 ways: 1. infinite because of the divine being who atoned for us. 2. infinite in power. 3. infinite in time...applies retroactively to those who came before Christ and continues forward through time in memorial. 4. infinite in coverage...all of the worlds God has created. 5. Infinite in depth. 6. Infinite in the degree of suffering experienced by the Savior. Infinite in love. 8. Infinite in the blessings it bestows. I missed one. (I listened to this on CD.)
*Power and godhood are directly related. Knowledge brings power. Virtue brings power. The development of each godly attribute brings additional power.
*Elder Maxwell: "awful arithmetic of the atonement"
*Adam was told in the day he partook of the fruit, he should surely die. He lived 999 years and in God's time one day is one thousand years. So he literally died on the day her partook of the fruit.
*Christ even experienced the dilemma of choosing faith over reason. He increased in knowledge and in wisdom and in favor with God and man. We know that he prayed that if it be possible the cup might pass over Him, but nevertheless thy will be done. This seems to indicate that he was struggling between what his mind thought was true and the faith he needed. He was asking...is there any other way? If Christ hadn't had to choose faith over reason, then He wouldn't have had the full experience of what we experience and couldn't fully succor us.
*Christ's divinity didn't somehow shield him from the pain or difficulty of being mortal, of fasting, of being mocked and spit upon and so on. His divinity, however, allowed him to bring a bigger cup with which to drink the bitter drink.
*When Moses saw all of the inhabitants of the world, he didn't just see a panoramic view but saw each person clearly through the spirit...not one was missed.
*In the celestial world, our physical body will mirror that of our physical body. Our physical body will be a reflection of our light, our goodness, our purity. The amount of beauty that we possess will be a reflection of our goodness.
*Righteous suffering is a powerful motivational tool for good. This is especially true when 1. the sufferer has pure motives. 2. The cause for which he suffers is just. 3. The recipient must know and love the sufferer. 4. The recipient must know and appreciate the cause for which the sufferer suffers. In the Atonement the first two conditions are absolutely there but the second two are entirely up to us...that is why it's so crucial to understand the atonement.
*Handel worked for 24 days to create the Messiah. When he created the Hallelujah Chorus he felt as if he had seen God. After a performance a friend remarked that he had been entertained. Handel replied that if people were only entertained, he felt he had failed. He wished to make men better.
*C.S. Lewis...parable of toothache...dentist isn't content to just fix the one tooth...wants to care for any problems...so too, when we go to Christ with a sin or weakness, He isn't content to help us change just that one thing. His goal is to make us perfect. He will continue to improve us until we reach perfection if we allow Him. The only power that can stop Him from perfecting us is ourselves.
*Every temporal tragedy can be counted with a spiritual victory (if we allow it) and the ultimate victory is godhood.
*If there was a heavenly barometer that allowed us to read the thoughts that people have during the sacrament, it would be a pretty good measure as to their actual spirituality. What do I think about during the sacrament? President Kimball said that remember is probably the most important word...we know what we should do, we just need to remember and do it.
*Each week a feast is served at church. Those who come to the sacrament table hungry or thirsty for spiritual sustenance will find his or her soul filled. Christ promised that those who partake of the sacrament worthily shall never hunger nor thirst but their soul shall be filled. Our souls are filled...with appreciation, love, peace, and self-esteem. Sacrament is a time for meditation, self-introspection, and self evaluation. It is a time for us to be our own judge.
*Gerald Lund...climbing instructor...belaying and fell...his climbing partner saved him...what do you do for someone like that? You remember him. You always remember him.
*Why was an atonement necessary? Why wasn't there some other way? 1. Perhaps it is an immutable law. 2. Perhaps it was mandated by God's perfect characterstics, His divine nature, because He knew there was something in that act and that act alone that would maximize the progress of His children. 3. Those who chose to inherit God's kingdom possessed a similar morality...together, using the law of common consent, they determined that having the Savior offer Himself as a sacrifice was the best way, the right way, the only way to achieve the end purposes to exalt as many of God's children as would allow Him. 4. A 4th possibility is that it was the only or best motivational tool to lead us to repent so that we could become exalted. No other method might have motivated us beyond our lazy and wicked ways. 5. Perhaps it was the only tool that would have appealed to our sense of justice and fairness...perhaps otherwise some of God's children would have complained that others came to their exaltation unfairly...without earning their way there. They might feel that some were treated unfairly or had been favored. Perhaps this was the only event that could bring exaltation to many of God's children without destroying order and harmony among the rest of His children. Perhaps it allows the unrepentant to recognize that the repentant haven't qualified for exaltation on their own but because of the great love and sacrifice of The Advocate they will allow those who have repented to receive their exaltation as a reward for the love and loyalty they showed the Savior in this life.

Reading this book was a life-changing experience for me as it deepened my understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Quotes I want to remember:

Why a study of the Atonement? “There is no escaping it—our salvation is predicated upon both an understating and acceptance of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.”

Mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety (Alma 34:16) “What child does not feel safety in the arms of his kind and loving father? What peace, what warmth, what reassurance, to know that in his arms he is safe from crime, anger, rejection, loneliness, and all the ills of the world”.

The Fall was not a tragic step backward; to the contrary it was a painful, but nonetheless giant step forward in our eternal journey. It was the springboard to our ascent.

“Salvation means a man’s being placed beyond the power of all his enemies.” - Joseph Smith

It may have been that such a covenant helped sustain the Savior in the Garden when all his apparent spiritual and physical energies had been exhausted, when there was “nothing left” to combat the Evil One and sin itself but the pure covenant to atone.

“I bear testimony that you cannot sink farther than the light and sweeping intelligence of Jesus Christ can reach. I bear testimony that as long as there is one spark of the will to repent and to reach, he is there. He did I not just descent to your condition; he descended below it, ‘that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth’ (D&C 88:6)” -Truman G. Madsen

The Savior voluntarily let his humanity take precedence over his divinity. … Not once did he raise the shield of godhood in order to soften the blows. Not once did he don the bulletproof vest of divinity. That he also had godly powers did not make his suffering any less excruciating, any less poignant, or any less real. To the contrary, it is for this very reason that his suffering was more, not less, than his mortal counterparts could experience.

Just as the Savior blessed the “little children, one by one”; just as the Nephites felt his wounds “one by one”; just as he listens to our prayers one by one; so, perhaps, he suffered for us, one by one.

The Lord’s soul-cry, “My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) was not a rhetorical question. It was the earnest pleading of a divine being, who, under intense pain, sought answers and comfort in his hour of need. There comes a time in each man’s life, regardless of his intellection acumen, when he must rely on faith and faith alone. Abraham experienced it as he drew his knife from the sheath on Mt. Moriah; Moses felt it as he marched toward the Red Sea. In each case there was no apparent solution at hand other than to simply obey; all the options of mortal reasoning had been exhausted. There was only faith to cling to, faith in its purest form. … Now the Savior had come to such a moment, with the Father withdrawn, alone on the cross. … This experience simply could not be intellectualized. And so it may have been with the Savior in his atoning hour. At this crisis moment it was faith, not omniscience that sustained him.

Tempter’s moment

In every sense of the term, his was a conscious, deliberate decision. He knew all that could be known in advance of the infinite suffering that would soon be his and his alone. His eyes were wide open when he tendered the most loving offer of all time: “Here am I, send me” (Abraham 3:27).

The compelling, driving force behind his sacrifice was love, not duty or glory or honor or any other temporal reward. It was love in its purest, deepest, most enduring sense.

The Savior’s sacrifice was the noblest gift of all because he who possessed all gave all. His spiritual, emotional, psychological, and life-giving powers were all laid on the altar of sacrifice without restraint.

“There is not one thing that the Lord could do for the salvation of the human family that He has neglected to do; … all that can be accomplished for their salvation, independent of them, has been accomplished in and by the Savior.” - Brigham Young

Atonement was infinite in the divineness of the Chosen one, power, time, coverage, depth, suffering and love.

Exinanition-
1
archaic : an emptying or enfeebling : EXHAUSTION
2
: HUMILIATION, ABASEMENT

———————————————————————-

Honest and credible witnesses of all ages will add their testimonies to that of the angelic messenger who proclaimed, “He is risen” (Matthew 28:6). And likewise, one day, those historic words will be spoken by each of us.

Rationalization and procrastination bring the husks of life— repentance, the kernels.

A godly sorrow involves joining with the Savior in the sorrow of Gethsemane. It is a sorrow that fosters a new heart and a new spirit.

“A clean confession, combined with a promise never to commit the sin again, when offered before one who has the right to receive it, is the purest type of repentance.” - Mahatma Gandhi

“I have learned that there are many who believe Jesus is the Son of God and that he is the Savior of the World, but they do not believe that he can save them. They believe in his identity, but not in his power to cleanse and purify and to save. To have faith in his identity is only half the principle. To have faith in his ability and in his power to cleanse and to save, that is the other half.” - Stephen Robinson (see Alma 33:16)

“Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life” (John 6:67-68) One may search the world in vain, he may scour the journals of thought, he may toy with the philosophies of men, but eventually he will learn that there is no hope, no lasting peace outside of Jesus Christ.

While the Savior knew all things in the Spirit (Alma 7:13), he also knew the pains, infirmities, and temptations of man as experienced in the flesh. He never allowed godly power to insulate him when he walked the path of mortals. He chose to let every pain and affliction and weakness of man traverse and engulf his physical frame. Paul observed that he became “like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest” (Hebrews 2:17). The refiner’s fire of human experience confirmed in his godly nature the tenderness of heart, the softness of soul, that made the Savior not only just but merciful, not only omnipotent but compassionate.

No matter how lost the world at large may be, no matter how depraved or degenerate it may become, there is yet a bright light of hope for those individuals who have a faith in Christ. Those who focus on him and his atoning sacrifice, who let those glorious truths rest in their minds continually, will find that Christ’s power to lift the human soul transcends even the weightiest burdens the world may thrust upon them.

As a result of his mortal experience, culminating in the Atonement, the Savior knows, understands, and feels every human condition, every human woe, and every human loss. He can comfort as no other. He can lift burdens as no other. He can listen as no other. There is no hurt he cannot soothe, rejection he cannot assuage, loneliness he cannot console. Whatever affliction the world casts at us, he has a remed of superior healing power.

The Atonement is, in fact, the most powerful motivational force in the world to be good from day to day and, when necessary, to repent when we have fallen short.

The atoning sacrifice was designed to motivate us, to draw us unto him, to lift us to higher ground, and ultimately to assists us in becoming as he is.

The power to convert a weakness to a strength is possible through the grace of Christ, but the Lord has imposed two prerequisites, humility and faith. If these requirements are satisfied, the grace of Christ becomes like a booster rocket that powers and lifts us above our weaknesses. (James 4:6, 10; 1 Peter 5:5; Isaiah 40:29, 31

Yet deep down in our quiet reflective moments of oneness with Divinity, we know there is no outside force that can steal away our spiritual strength. … We may not control our temporal setbacks, but we always, always, always control our spiritual destiny. Every temporal tragedy may be countered with a spiritual victory.

That is the essence of freedom, to know the Savior and obey his truths. As we do so, we become free from prejudice, falsehood, sin, contention, and every other injurious practice or evil nature known to man. … As we come to know the Savior and his truths we enlarge our capacity for freedom.

While knowledge is essential to the acquisition of power, there is yet another ingredient, often ignored, and sometimes even ridiculed, that is prerequisite to receiving the “higher” powers—those powers necessary to enjoy a fullness of freedom. It is obedience.

“There are two freedoms, the false where one is free to do what he likes, and the true where he is free to do what he ought.” - Charles Kingsley

So that we will not forget, we partake of his emblems often. (Alma 46:8)

“We must come … to the sacrament table hungry.” - Melvin J Ballard
Any man or woman who comes to sacrament meeting hungering and thirsting for spiritual food will find refreshment and nourishment for his or her soul. … As we remember the Atonement and genuinely reflect upon his sacrifice and his love, our souls are filled with appreciation, peace, and a feeling of self-worth that comes from being one with the Savior.

The sacrament provides a healing balm to the spiritually wounded.

A stunning, thought provoking tome on the greatest event in Christian theology. Callister digs deep and examines every facet of the Atonement and how it applies to daily life.

Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth (2 Nephi 2:6)

This book provided an excellent review of the atonement and it was very comprehensive in the sense that it related the atonement to quite a variety of other gospel principles. There is definitely a niche for this book, as I don't know of many other books that focus solely on the subject of Christ's suffering in Gethsemene and Golgotha. The book is full of great quotes and scriptural references. However, I did not have the same enthusiasm for this book while I was reading it as others who reccomended it did. I think this may have been because the rhetoric in some parts seemed a bit repetitive or drawn out with too many adjectives (not that there are enough to describe the atonement). But this is definately a book that needed to be written and is worth reading.

This book is scripture. The atonement is infinite in depth, scope, time, place, love and infinite other ways. I felt this book was complete but when I thought about it, an infinite subject cannot be contained to a finite book. In that case, this book is a perfect summary.

This book was uplifting in ways no other book could be, except perhaps scripture if interpreted correctly. The book gave me opportunity to have focused contemplation on specific points regarding Christ’s Atonement. The richness with which the author delved into and clarified particular doctrines enabled me to not only increase in knowledge, but to have a greater desire to apply the power of the Atonement in my life. I found nothing to discourage or confuse. There were things explained in the book which I know are aspects many people misunderstand. The book corrected some of my misunderstandings. He discussed points of common confusion in depth with many scriptural and prophetic sources. He discussed his reasoning for certain viewpoints and went through various arguments or differing views and explained the why’s and how’s about the Truth concerning the Atonement. It really is a complete learning guide for this number one, most essential topic for our lives now and for eternity.