Advocate

In the heat of the Civil War, a 19 year old Union soldier fell asleep during his guard duty. A whole flank of the army was killed on his watch. The just penalty for his mistake was death. The boy, having lost friends and many fellow soldiers, felt this was what he deserved. He was subject to the law of justice. 

President Lincoln was ready to sign the warrant for his execution. The soldier’s sweet mother, having lost her husband and one by one all five of her other children to the war, pleaded for him to forgive the penalty. Her heart couldn’t bear to lose her last child. He was all she had left. President Lincoln, having compassion on the grief-stricken mother, pardoned the young soldier. Not for the soldiers sake, but for the mother’s sake. 

I love this story. It is such a good example of how mercy outweighs justice. The atonement is crucial to God’s plan. It had to be Jehovah. He is the beloved Son. He loves and is loved by all things He created. Jesus Christ suffered and died that we might repent and look to Him for mercy. He is the only way back to the Father. Christ loves us far more than this mother loved her child. He will treat us like we are all he has left. He created us. He is our Savior. He is our Advocate with the Father.

D&C 45:

3 Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him.

I love the use of the word pleading. The scripture doesn’t say “might plead” or “will plead”. He is “pleading”. Currently. Right now. Constantly. Christ, our advocate, is pleading our cause with the Father.  Always. Forever. 

Alma 34:

15 And thus he shall bring salvation to all those who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice, and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance.

16 And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption.