In Acts 1, we read about the 40 days Christ ministered to the apostles after His death and resurrection. During this time, He taught them what to do after He ascended into heaven. These 40 days of instruction proved invaluable to the apostles, who continued to lead Christ’s church and teach His gospel despite immense hardship and persecution.
This story is paralleled by an account found in 3 Nephi, the focal point of the Book of Mormon. In chapters 11-28, Nephi details Christ’s ministry to the people in ancient America after His death and resurrection. An especially memorable story recounts when Christ was about to leave the Nephites for the evening. When He tells them this, He looks around and sees that they are in tears, as if begging Him not to go. Although He spent all day teaching and ministering to the Nephites, He decides to stay and help them. Nephi also details how Christ prayed for the people in a manner that “the eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father” (3 Nephi 17:16).
Steven Neal captures the spirit of Christ’s visit with “The Light of the World.” Jesus is shown on one side, embracing and ministering to the Nephites. The clouds in the background break around Him and several rays of light emulate from His head. By portraying Christ as the sun, Neal indeed depicts Him as the light of the world, just as the title suggests. He is not just the light of the world, though; He is also the light of each of our individual lives. There is no corner dark enough that His radiance, goodness, and character cannot and will not illuminate. As He did with the Nephites of old, He sees our needs and He will fulfill them. He knows you. He loves you. And He’s praying for you.
-Emma Belnap, Research Assistant