📒 21 Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and ye know the things that ye must do in my church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do; for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do;
📜 12 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and remember that they shall have faith in me or they can in nowise be saved;
📜 6 And this is my gospel—repentance and baptism by water, and then cometh the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost, even the Comforter, which showeth all things, and teacheth the peaceable things of the kingdom.)
Question: What is the reason why Jesus set an example for us?
Scripture (3 Nephi 27:21): “This is my gospel… the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do.”
Key words
- Gospel → the good news, the covenant path, the way of salvation.
- Do → action, obedience, imitation, living the pattern.
Dissection
1. “This is my gospel” → Jesus defines His gospel not only as doctrine but as a lived pattern. The reason He sets an example is so the gospel is embodied, not abstract.
2. “The works which ye have seen me do” → His life is the model. Healing, serving, forgiving, submitting to the Father.
3. “That shall ye also do” → The purpose is imitation. By following His example, disciples enact the gospel in their own lives.
Reason
Jesus set an example so that His gospel would be both taught and demonstrated. The gospel is not just words—it is a way of living. By “doing” as He did, we align ourselves with His covenant, show faith through action, and become witnesses of Him.
Here’s a layered dissection, keeping the focus on “gospel” and the question: What is the reason why Jesus set an example for us?
Anchor Scripture
📒 3 Nephi 27:21 → “This is my gospel… the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do.”
Reason: Jesus sets the example so the gospel is not only declared but embodied. His life is the living definition of the gospel.
📜 36 And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation.
📒 1 Nephi 13:36 → The gospel is written, tied to the Lamb, the Rock, and Salvation. His example shows that the gospel is not just text but living testimony.
📜 7 ¶ How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
📜 19 Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that bring glad tidings of good things, and that say unto Zion: Behold, thy God reigneth! As the dews of Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them!)
📗 Isaiah 52:7 → The gospel is “good tidings” and “peace.” Jesus’ example demonstrates how to publish peace and salvation through action.
📘 Doctrine and Covenants 128:19 → The gospel is a “voice of gladness” for living and dead. His example shows joy, mercy, and truth embodied in deeds.
📜 14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.
📕 1 Corinthians 9:14 → Those who preach the gospel must live it. Jesus lived it first, showing that preaching without doing is incomplete.
📜 13 Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.
📜 40 And this is the gospel, the glad tidings, which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us—)
🗝📜 19 And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance.
📜 25 I marveled, for I understood that the Savior spent about three years in his ministry among the Jews and those of the house of Israel, endeavoring to teach them the everlasting gospel and call them unto repentance;
🗝📜 57 I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption, through the sacrifice of the Only Begotten Son of God, among those who are in darkness and under the bondage of sin in the great world of the spirits of the dead.
📒 3 Nephi 27:13 → The gospel is defined as doing the will of the Father. Jesus’ example is the gospel itself—submission, obedience, and love.
📘 Doctrine and Covenants 76:40 → The gospel is “glad tidings” borne from heaven. His example makes heavenly gladness visible on earth.
📘 Doctrine and Covenants 138:19, 25, 57 → The everlasting gospel is resurrection, redemption, repentance. Jesus’ example—His ministry, sacrifice, and continued work—shows that the gospel is eternal labor for souls.
📚 Moses 5
📜 58 And thus the Gospel began to be preached, from the beginning, being declared by holy angels sent forth from the presence of God, and by his own voice, and by the gift of the Holy Ghost.
📚 Moses 5:58 → The gospel began “from the beginning,” declared by angels and God’s own voice. Jesus’ example fulfills that ancient declaration, showing continuity from creation to redemption.
Synthesis
The reason Jesus set an example is so the gospel is lived, not abstract. His works embody salvation, peace, gladness, obedience, resurrection, and redemption. By “doing” as He did, we enact the gospel in our own lives, becoming living witnesses of God’s reign.
In expanding the word gospel from 3 Nephi 27:21, the scriptures of the Plan of Salvation reveal how Christ’s example is inseparably tied to redemption, resurrection, and eternal life. Isaiah 53 shows His suffering for our healing. Acts 4 and Moses 6 declare salvation in no other name but Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15 and Hebrews 5 testify of resurrection and eternal salvation through obedience. Alma 12 and 2 Nephi 25–10 emphasize repentance, reconciliation, and grace. Abraham 3 and Revelation 1 place this plan in premortal design and eternal glory. Doctrine and Covenants 128 calls us forward in this great cause, rejoicing in freedom for the living and the dead.
📜 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
📕 Acts 4
📜 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
📜 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
📜 9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
📕 1 John 2
📜 1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
(📕 Titus 1
📜 2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;)
📜 23 For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.
(📒 2 Nephi 10
📜 24 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved.)
📒 Alma 12
📜 33 But God did call on men, in the name of his Son, (this being the plan of redemption which was laid) saying: If ye will repent, and harden not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten Son;
📜 22 Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free.
📚 Moses 6
📜 52 And he also said unto him: If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, asking all things in his name, and whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be given you.
📜 62 And now, behold, I say unto you: This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time.
📜 24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
📜 25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
📜 26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.
(📕 Revelation 1
📜 6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.)
Closing Summary For A Plan Of Salvation
Together, these passages show that the gospel is the Plan of Salvation itself—Christ’s example of doing the Father’s will, suffering for sin, conquering death, and offering grace. His life and sacrifice embody the gospel, making it more than doctrine: it is the lived path of reconciliation, obedience, and joy. Thus, the reason He set an example for us is so that in “doing” as He did, we participate in the Plan of Salvation, becoming witnesses of His mercy and heirs of eternal life. This closes the section on “gospel” and unites both explorations: the gospel as Christ’s example, and the gospel as the eternal plan of redemption.
The cross-reference word do in 3 Nephi 27:21—“the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do”—points us to the actions required of disciples. Matthew 4 calls us to follow Him and become fishers of men. Mark 8 commands self-denial and taking up the cross. John 14 declares Christ as the only way to the Father. Hebrews 5 shows obedience learned through suffering. 1 Peter 2 and 1 John 4 emphasize following His steps and becoming as He is in this world. In the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 31 teaches enduring to the end in His example, 3 Nephi 12 calls for perfection, 3 Nephi 18 sets prayer and repentance as His example, and Moroni 7 exhorts us to be filled with Christlike love and purity. Doctrine and Covenants 35 and 56 confirm that salvation comes through believing, becoming one in Him, and keeping His commandments by taking up the cross.
📜 19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
📕 Mark 8
📜 34 ¶ And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
📕 John 14
📜 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
📜 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
📜 21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
📕 1 John 4
📜 17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
📜 16 And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved.
📜 48 Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect.
📜 16 And as I have prayed among you even so shall ye pray in my church, among my people who do repent and are baptized in my name. Behold I am the light; I have set an example for you.
📒 Moroni 7
📜 48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.
📜 2 I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was crucified for the sins of the world, even as many as will believe on my name, that they may become the sons of God, even one in me as I am one in the Father, as the Father is one in me, that we may be one.
📜 2 And he that will not take up his cross and follow me, and keep my commandments, the same shall not be saved.
Closing Summary Ye Must Do
The “things that ye must do” are not abstract—they are the lived imitation of Christ’s example: following Him, denying self, obeying, enduring, praying, repenting, loving, and becoming one with Him and the Father. In 3 Nephi 27:21, Jesus sets the pattern so His gospel is embodied in action. To “do” as He did is to walk the covenant path, to live the truth of His church, and to be transformed into His likeness. This closes the section on “do,” completing the witness that the gospel is both declared and enacted in the life of Christ and in the lives of His disciples.
This study has traced the question “What is the reason why Jesus set an example for us?” through the words gospel and do in 3 Nephi 27:21. The gospel is revealed as the Plan of Salvation itself—Christ’s submission to the Father, His suffering for sin, His triumph over death, and His gift of grace. It is glad tidings from the beginning, declared by angels, fulfilled in His ministry, and extended eternally through resurrection and redemption. To “do” as He did is to embody that gospel: following Him, denying self, obeying, enduring, praying, repenting, loving, and becoming one with Him and the Father.
Jesus set His example so that the gospel would not remain abstract but lived. His works are the pattern of salvation, showing us how to walk the covenant path and become witnesses of His mercy. In living the gospel and doing His will, we are transformed into His likeness, reconciled to God, and filled with hope in eternal life. This unites the two threads—gospel and do—into one witness: the gospel is both declared and enacted, and Christ’s example is the way by which we are saved.
Song "THE BEST TIME OF MY LIFE" Paul Williams and The Victory Trio
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