Isaiah 53-Christ Suffered for Me

President Joseph Fielding Smith, explained what it means that Jesus had “no beauty that we should desire him”:

“There was nothing about [Jesus] to cause people to single him out. In appearance he was like men; and so it is expressed here by the prophet that he had no form or comeliness, that is, he was not so distinctive, so different from others that people would recognize him as the Son of God. He appeared as a mortal man” (Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. [1954–56], 1:23).

Elder David. A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles:

“There is no physical pain, no spiritual wound, no anguish of soul or heartache, no infirmity or weakness you or I ever confront in mortality that the Savior did not experience first. In a moment of weakness we may cry out, ‘No one knows what it is like. No one understands.’ But the Son of God perfectly knows and understands, for He has felt and borne our individual burdens. And because of His infinite and eternal sacrifice (see Alma 34:14), He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy. He can reach out, touch, succor, heal, and strengthen us” (“Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 90).

President James E. Faust of the First Presidency:

“He suffered so much pain, ‘indescribable anguish,’ and ‘overpowering torture’ [John Taylor, The Mediation and Atonement (1882), 150] for our sake. His profound suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane … caused Him ‘to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit’ [D&C 19:18]. …

“… No one has ever suffered in any degree what He did” (“The Atonement: Our Greatest Hope,” Ensign, Nov. 2001, 19).

Blessings of a Proper Fast

Isaiah 58

11 "And the Lord shall guide thee continually" (constant companionship of the Holy Ghost “…that they may always have His Spirit to be with them)

Parley P. Pratt said, “It (The Holy Ghost) quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections and adapts them by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and features. It tends to give health, vigor, animation and social feeling. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being” (Key to the Science of Theology, 101-103).

12 And they that shall be of thee (your family)shall build the old waste places: (a place that is not fruitful or productive) thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; Elder Bednar added, “Multi-generational families in the Church are essential. If we don’t have them then every generation in the Church is brand new. Most likely to interrupt that cycle is a lack of gospel learning in the home. Learn the gospel and then teach it to your families. Teach them to honour their covenants (the Sabbath is a perpetual covenant between us and the Lord) and live faithfully” (http://www.mormonnewsroom.org.au/article/elder-and-sister-bednar-give-marriage-advice-to-australian-latter-day-saints).

The Sabbath Day

Isaiah 58

13 "If thou turn away thy foot (denotes our steps or actions) from the sabbath, from doing thy (keyword "thy"-in other words, the Sabbath day is not our day. It’s God’s day) pleasure on my holy day; Elder Quentin L. Cook said, “Honoring the Sabbath is a form of righteousness that will bless and strengthen families, connect us with our Creator, and increase happiness. The Sabbath can help separate us from that which is frivolous, inappropriate, or immoral. It allows us to be in the world but not of the world” (Shipshape and Bristol Fashion: Be Temple Worthy—in Good Times and Bad Times, GC, October 2015). and call the sabbath a delight" ("Delight" Hebrew=pleasure or luxury), Elder M. Russell Ballard said, “Another important doctrine that we should cling to is to observe the Sabbath day. This helps us remain unspotted from the world, provides us with physical rest, and gives each of us the spiritual refreshment of worshipping the Father and the Son every Sunday. When we delight in the Sabbath day, it is a sign of our love for Them” (God is at the Helm, GC, October2015)

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; (then, God’s pleasures become our pleasures) and I will cause thee to ride (ride denotes movement under someone else’s power) the high places (high places=mountains or temples and other places of revelation) of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage (inheritance) of Jacob thy father: (D&C 132:37 tells us that the heritage of Jacob is eternal life, D&C 14:7 says it’s the greatest gift of all the gifts of God) for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it."  D&C 1:38 “What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken and I excuse not myself. And though the heaven and the earth shall pass away, my words shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled.”