“The Savior and the Sacrament,” Ensign, December 2014, 38–39
The Savior and the Sacrament
By David L. Beck
Young Men General President
As you partake of the sacrament, you renew your covenant to always remember the Savior.
What do you think about when you eat the bread and drink the water of the sacrament or when you prepare, bless, or pass the sacrament? Many of us ponder our covenants and how we are living. We think about our sins and pray for forgiveness and determine to do better.
These are important aspects of the ordinance of the sacrament. In addition, there is something else to ponder—something so profound and so specific that it is part of the sacramental prayer itself. It is remembering Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Those who eat the bread promise to “eat in remembrance of the body of [the] Son” and to “always remember him” (D&C 20:77). Similarly, those who drink the water promise to drink “in remembrance of the blood of [the] Son” and “that they do always remember him” (D&C 20:79).
The choice to remember the Savior and His Atonement and sacrifice is fundamental to the ordinance. As Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught, “In the simple and beautiful language of the sacramental prayers … the principal word we hear seems to be remember. … What is stressed in both prayers is that all of this is done in remembrance of Christ. In so participating we witness that we will always remember him, that we may always have his Spirit to be with us.”1
The Savior stressed these same points when He instituted the sacrament with His Apostles during the Passover in Jerusalem on the last night of His mortal ministry—the night He suffered for us in the Garden of Gethsemane before suffering again on the cross. For example, after giving them bread to eat, He said, “This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19; see also Matthew 26:26–28).
During the Savior’s first day among the Nephites in the Americas, He also taught them the ordinance of the sacrament. Again, He instructed them to partake in remembrance of His body and blood and told them that as they did, “it shall be a testimony unto the Father that ye do always remember me” (3 Nephi 18:7). He then promised them, “If ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you” (3 Nephi 18:7, 11).
What a marvelous blessing! In a world filled with challenges and turmoil and temptations constantly trying to lead us astray, what more important gift could we have? By having the Spirit with us, we can “know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:5). That will give us the power and wisdom to live the way the Lord would have us live, to make correct choices, to serve faithfully, and to become like Him.
As you participate in the sacrament each week, what can you do to remember Him? What can you do to always remember Him—throughout the week and throughout your life?
May I invite you to ponder those questions and to make a commitment to always remember the Savior. You’ll be amazed at how it will change your life.