Afterlife

Resurrected “by the power of the Spirit”

While reading my scriptures last night, I came across something I never noticed before in 2 Ne: 2:8:

How great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God,save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit . . .

What do you think it means that Jesus was resurrected “by the power of the Spirit”?

Published by

Kim Siever

Queer Mormon poet with radical political views. I have been married 27 years, and we have 6 children. Sunday school president. Served in the Utah Provo Mission.

4 thoughts on “Resurrected “by the power of the Spirit””

  1. I think that once he crossed the veil he regained his authority as a member of the Godhead, and with that authority (the power of the Spirit) he was able to resurrect his body.

    In mortality, he had a certain set of keys, and once passed, he held the totality of the keys, and was able to complete the Plan.

  3. It seems to me the Holy Ghost had a role in this, since the term “Spirit” generally refers to Him, especially when capitalized. But I don’t pretend to understand what that role was or how the task was accomplished.

  4. That’s an interesting question. I think that there are three Spirits it could refer to: the spirit body of Christ (in other words, Christ himself now as an disembodied Spirit), the Spirit of Christ (the Light of Christ which fills the immensity of space, etc.) or the Holy Ghost. I don’t think the text really gives enough clues to make a proper or absolute determination, but my best guess, based on the comparison to the body of Christ (“according to the flesh”) would be that Lehi is referring to the spirit body of Christ. As Christ is the Lord God Omnipotent who prior to coming was a Spirit and after crucification (prior to resurrection) was a Spirit, I’d say Lehi is referring to the godhood of Jesus, meaning that Jesus was able to resurrect himself because he had power in himself, being God, to do so. I’d also say that it refers to the Holy Spirit (or Spirit of Christ or Light of Christ, as it has many designations) since Jesus had a fullness of the Spirit and thus was Omnipotent (Lord God Omnipotent and all that.) This is what makes a god a god, having a fullness of the Spirit.

    I’d say that the phrase in that verse does not refer to the Holy Ghost, as it and other verses around it are almost exclusively talking about Christ.

    Also, The Dallas, my understanding is that Jesus did not lose any of his authority as a member of the Godhead while in mortality, and thus could not regain it when he died. He still was in charge of all the angels, even sending some to John, according to the JST.

Comments are closed.