The Foreordained Christ

Stacy Kudlicki
9/27/07
REL A 211: Section 35
Jesus The Christ Chapter Reflection
Chapter 2: Preexistence and Foreordination of the Christ
Several new ideas were brought to the table for questioning in my mind while reading this chapter. First is the idea that Christ was ordained and chosen to be the one and only Savior. But I still wonder why he was chosen so? Was it because Jesus was God’s firstborn Spirit child? Is that what qualified him? I also wonder why Lucifer was “already of exalted rank” (7)? Another new idea to me is that the truth of Christ’s foreordination was translated from prophets to the people through imagery and parables rather than direct statements. I wonder why that is, also? Were they afraid of being stoned to death? I also found it interesting that James E. Talmage points out that Christ says in John 8:58, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” Abraham lived 19 centuries earlier than Jesus did so he obviously was referring to some kind of preexistence. Another reference to the preexistence is in John 17:5 where Jesus is praying to God saying, “O Father glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.” These words, spoken by the Savior who knew of his purpose on Earth, indicate that Christ also knew and remembered a pre-mortal life in which he was called to be said Savior.